Israel plans to form a limited probe panel to look into the bloody commando operation on the Gaza-bound aid flotilla last week amid intense international condemnation and pressure, a news report said today.
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to appoint a state panel to probe the Israel navy raid on a Turkish-flagged ship last week that left nine activists dead and several people wounded, Haaretz online reported today.
The report, quoting a senior source in Jerusalem, said the panel would comprise top jurists. It would include at least one American as observer.
The committee will not only be mandated to probe the circumstances surrounding the seizure of the Turkish-flagged
Mavi Marmara by the Israeli commandos, but look into the
legality of closure of the Gaza Strip and its naval blockade, the report said.
However, the panel would not be allowed to interrogate soldiers or officers who took part in the bloody commando raid.
An official announcement was awaiting approval from the attorney general - to ensure that there were no conflicts of interest among the potential members of the committee. The report said it was awaiting a green light from the US administration over the move.
However, it would fail to satisfy those calling for an independent, international investigation.
The Israel defence forces announced yesterday that it would conduct an internal military investigation into the navy's deadly raid of a humanitarian aid convoy bound for the Gaza Strip.
The team has been asked to study the failures and lessons of the raid on a Turkish-flagged ship last week that left nine Turkish activists dead and several people wounded.
The army decided to appoint an investigative team due to the "great importance with which the IDF views a comprehensive clarification of the facts related to its operational activities," the military said in a statement.
Israel has justified the crippling embargo on the Gaza Strip on the ground that it has prevented vessels from carrying weapons for Hamas, who control the enclave.
