- Oct 11, 1999
- 970
- 106
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A U.N. probe said there was clear evidence to back prosecutions against Israel for killing and torture when its troops stormed a Gaza-bound aid flotilla in May.
Israels May 31 efforts to stop a flotilla of ships from reaching the Gaza Strip broke international human rights and humanitarian law, and more such incidents may occur, according to a report by a three-person panel of experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council.
Lethal force was employed by the Israeli soldiers in a widespread and arbitrary manner which caused an unnecessarily large number of persons to be killed or seriously injured, the report said. Less extreme means could have been employed in nearly all instances of the Israeli operation, since there was no imminent threat to soldiers.
Israels Foreign Ministry called the report as biased and as one sided as the body that has produced it, and said its own inquiries had sufficiently investigated the raid.
Israel has said that in the confrontation, which followed numerous warnings for the ships to change course, its soldiers were attacked with knives and clubs after boarding the Mavi Marmara, one of the six vessels in the flotilla, and seven were wounded, including by gunfire after volunteers aboard the ship managed to grab Israeli firearms.
Activists have said they threw the firearms into the sea. There was no violence on the other five ships.
Naval Blockade
The Israeli raid on vessels attempting to breach a naval blockade of the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip left nine Turkish citizens dead, generated international criticism and led Turkey to suspend diplomatic and security cooperation. Turkey was once Israels closest ally in the region.
There was no legal basis for the Israeli forces to conduct an assault and interception in international waters, the report said.
Israel refused to cooperate with the UN inquiry, and video and photographic evidence obtained from Israel, mostly through the Internet or published proceedings from Israeli inquiries, could not be relied on, the report said.
While it was clear that the Israeli soldiers who tried to take control of the ship were attacked, the panel found no evidence that passengers used firearms to shoot at the soldiers.
Similar incidents are likely to occur unless there is a dramatic shift in the existing paradigm, the UN said. Might and strength are enhanced when attended by a sense of justice and fair play. An unfair victory has never been known to bring lasting peace.
UN Panel Report
The UN panels report was prepared by Karl Hudson-Phillips, a former attorney general of Trinidad and Tobago; Desmond de Silva, former chief prosecutor of the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone; and Mary Shanthi Dairiam, a Malaysian womens rights activist.
Israels May 31 efforts to stop a flotilla of ships from reaching the Gaza Strip broke international human rights and humanitarian law, and more such incidents may occur, according to a report by a three-person panel of experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council.
Lethal force was employed by the Israeli soldiers in a widespread and arbitrary manner which caused an unnecessarily large number of persons to be killed or seriously injured, the report said. Less extreme means could have been employed in nearly all instances of the Israeli operation, since there was no imminent threat to soldiers.
Israels Foreign Ministry called the report as biased and as one sided as the body that has produced it, and said its own inquiries had sufficiently investigated the raid.
Israel has said that in the confrontation, which followed numerous warnings for the ships to change course, its soldiers were attacked with knives and clubs after boarding the Mavi Marmara, one of the six vessels in the flotilla, and seven were wounded, including by gunfire after volunteers aboard the ship managed to grab Israeli firearms.
Activists have said they threw the firearms into the sea. There was no violence on the other five ships.
Naval Blockade
The Israeli raid on vessels attempting to breach a naval blockade of the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip left nine Turkish citizens dead, generated international criticism and led Turkey to suspend diplomatic and security cooperation. Turkey was once Israels closest ally in the region.
There was no legal basis for the Israeli forces to conduct an assault and interception in international waters, the report said.
Israel refused to cooperate with the UN inquiry, and video and photographic evidence obtained from Israel, mostly through the Internet or published proceedings from Israeli inquiries, could not be relied on, the report said.
While it was clear that the Israeli soldiers who tried to take control of the ship were attacked, the panel found no evidence that passengers used firearms to shoot at the soldiers.
Similar incidents are likely to occur unless there is a dramatic shift in the existing paradigm, the UN said. Might and strength are enhanced when attended by a sense of justice and fair play. An unfair victory has never been known to bring lasting peace.
UN Panel Report
The UN panels report was prepared by Karl Hudson-Phillips, a former attorney general of Trinidad and Tobago; Desmond de Silva, former chief prosecutor of the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone; and Mary Shanthi Dairiam, a Malaysian womens rights activist.
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