Israel Matzav

Turkey flushes the Palmer Commission down the memory hole

I am sure that many of you remember the UN-sponsored Palmer Commission, which issued a report on the Mavi Marmara incident that found, among other things, that Israel's blockade of Gaza is legal.

Turkey has apparently decided to pretend that the Palmer Commission doesn't exist. In a report on the first scheduled 'hearing' in the 'trial' of four senior IDF officers for the Mavi Marmara incident, see if you can figure out where Today's Zaman mentions the Palmer Commission (Hat Tip: Joshua I).

Following the Mavi Marmara attack, Israel's government set up the Turkel Commission, a commission of inquiry headed by Israeli Supreme Court Justice Jacob Turkel, to investigate the attack. Turkish leaders dismissed the Israeli investigation, and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon repeated the demand for an independent investigation, stating that the Israeli investigation would not have international credibility.

Turkey also established an inquiry, which concluded, in contrast to the Israeli inquiry, that the Gaza blockade and the Israeli raid are illegal. After the Turkish inquiry, Turkey described the raid as a violation of international law “tantamount to banditry and piracy” and described the killings of activists as “state-sponsored terrorism.” Concerning the Israeli inquiry, Turkey said its own commission was “surprised, appalled and dismayed that the national inquiry process in Israel has resulted in the exoneration of the Israeli armed forces.”

Funny. I couldn't find any mention of the Palmer Commission there either. I guess if Turkey doesn't have an answer for something, it doesn't exist.

But if this is an indication of the fairness of the 'trial' to be held in Turkey, it should be obvious even to those who are not pro-Israel partisans why the four officers in question have no plans to be there.

Labels: Mavi Marmara, Palmer Commission, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:14 PM