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'Israel flotilla raid was unlawful' <br><br>
UN Gaza aid probe says the raid of Israeli forces on flotilla was in
violation of international law.<br><br>
</b></font><font size=3>Last Modified: 23 Sep 2010 09:44 GMT <br>
<a href="http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/09/2010922195831956543.html" eudora="autourl">
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/09/2010922195831956543.html<br>
<br>
</a>The UN Human Rights Council's fact-finding mission has accused
Israeli forces of violating international law when they raided a
Gaza-bound aid flotilla.<br><br>
The three UN-appointed human rights experts said in a report released on
Wednesday that Israeli forces showed "incredible violence"
during and after their raid on the aid flotilla that left eight Turkish
activists and one Turkish-American killed.<br><br>
The UN probe said there was "clear evidence to support
prosecutions" against Israel for "wilful killing" and
torture committed when its troops stormed the aid flotilla last
May.<br><br>
Israel's military response to the flotilla "betrayed an unacceptable
level of brutality" and violated international law "including
international humanitarian and human rights law." The three-member
panel said.<br><br>
"The conduct of the Israeli military and other personnel towards the
flotilla passengers was not only disproportionate to the occasion but
demonstrated levels of totally unnecessary and incredible
violence."<br><br>
The report is scheduled to be debated by the Human Rights Council on
Monday.<br><br>
The report also rejected Israel's stance that its forces acted in
self-defence when they raided the flotilla, arguing that even those who
did not attempt to stop Israeli soldiers from boarding the aid ships
"received injuries, including fatal injuries."<br><br>
"It is apparent that no effort was made to minimise injuries at
certain states of the operation and that the use of live fire was done in
an extensive and arbitrary manner. The circumstances of the killing of at
least six of the passengers were in a manner consistent with an
extra-legal, arbitrary and summary execution."<br><br>
<b>Israel's reaction<br><br>
</b>Israel rejected the report as "biased" and
"one-sided."<br><br>
"The report... is as biased and as one sided as the body that
has produced it," the statement said.<br><br>
"Israel... is of the opinion that the flotilla incident is amply and
sufficiently investigated as it is. All additional dealing with this
issue is superfluous and unproductive."<br><br>
Israel insisted that it acted in line with international law, arguing
that it had the right to retaliate against ships attempting to breach its
blockade of the impoverished Gaza Strip.<br><br>
However, the panel said that since Gaza was suffering from a humanitarian
crisis on the day of the deadly raid, for this reason alone, Israel's
blockade is unlawful and cannot be sustained in law.<br><br>
Hamas welcomed the report and told Al Jazeera that the findings show that
Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories violates human
rights.<br><br>
"More should now be done, the commander who led the raid should be
taken to International Criminal Court." Hamas said.<br><br>
The fact-finding mission, chaired by Karl Hudson-Phillips, former
judge of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, had
travelled to Turkey, Jordan and Britain to interview witnesses and
officials for the probe.<br><br>
Desmond de Silva, former chief prosecutor of the Sierra Leone War
Crimes Tribunal, and Shanthi Dairiam, as Malaysian human rights
expert, are the other members of the panel.<br>
Source: <br><br>
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