Xinhua
January 25, 2011 - 1:00am
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-01/25/c_13705241.htm


Turkish President Abdullah Gul said on Monday that the report prepared by Israel on its attack on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla had no international credibility.

Gul made the statement at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul prior to his departure for the winter session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg.

Replying to questions on the Israeli report, Gul said, "what Israel did has nothing to do with the international law. The report issued by Israel does not have credibility and legitimacy."

Council of Europe was the biggest political organization of Europe, he said. Gul said that COE was a very important organization for issues such as democratic standards, human rights and rule of law.

Turkey only took notice of decisions by the UN Human Rights Committee, he added.

Turkey has released its own report on an Israeli attack last year on a flotilla of Gaza-bound aid ships, just a day after Israel leaked the report it submitted on the incident to the United Nations.

The dueling reports add a new element to the diplomatic crisis that erupted between Turkey and Israel, following the May 31 attack on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara.

Turkey said the report it released Monday was an interim report and that a fresher one would be presented to the United Nations in mid-February.

The Turkish report, which was partially released to the semi- official Anatolia news agency, evaluates the attack on the aid ships and outlines Turkey's demands from Israel.

The report begins by highlighting the unlawfulness of the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip, and the right of humanitarian groups to extend aid to the Palestinians, before evaluating the Israeli defense forces' attack against the flotilla.

The report's key finding is its allegations that two civilians were killed by Israeli commandos before boarding the vessel from helicopters.




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