Israel Matzav

IDF probe of Mavi Marmara to focus on four issues

I hope to have something a bit later today on the civilian probe into the handling of the flotilla of fools, but here's a summary of the focus of the military probe being led by former IDF General Giora Eiland.

According to senior officers, the probe will focus on four main issues. The first is whether the Shayetet was the right unit to carry out such an operation. The second relates to the tactical level, including the way the ship was boarded – navy commandos fast-roped onto the ships from helicopters – and whether there were other viable alternatives for stopping the flotilla. The third issue pertains to the internal military decision-making process leading up to the operation, and the fourth deals with intelligence matters.

“No agency in Israel, including the Mossad, currently collects intelligence on terror organizations in Turkey,” a senior defense official said on Sunday.

“One question that will need to come up is whether this should remain the case or whether this needs to change.”

According to the official, there are other reasons, in addition to the flotilla and the Turkish government’s suspected involvement in financing the mercenaries, to possibly begin turning Israeli intelligence agencies’ focus to terror organizations in Turkey.

“There is a radical process sweeping throughout Turkey right now,” the official said. “It is important to understand where things are heading there and how this will affect Israel.”

If not since the AKP's election in 2002, then certainly since Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan threw a tantrum in front of Israeli President Shimon Peres in January 2009, we should have been gathering intelligence information on Turkey. By the way, the Defense Minister in January 2009 was... Ehud Barak (when Erdogan took office it was Ariel Sharon - he kept the position when he was Prime Minister).

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:53 PM