[Peace-discuss] Fw: Israeli Navy Officers Condemn Government Handling of Commando Raid

[unionyes]

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From: <moderator at PORTSIDE.ORG>
To: <PORTSIDE at LISTS.PORTSIDE.ORG>
Sent: Monday, June 07, 2010 9:35 PM
Subject: Israeli Navy Officers Condemn Government Handling of Commando Raid


> Israeli Navy Officers Condemn Government Handling of
> Commando Raid
>
> Israel Navy reserves officers: Allow external Gaza
> flotilla probe
>
> by Anshel Pfeffer
>
> Haaretz.com
>
> Published 06.06.10
>
> http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-navy-reserves-officers-allow-external-gaza-flotilla-probe-1.294536
>
> Israel Navy reserves officers: Allow external Gaza
> flotilla probe Officers denounce operation as 'military
> and diplomatic failure', slam government for placing
> blame on the activists. By Anshel Pfeffer Tags: Israel
> news IDF Gaza flotilla
>
> A group of top Israel Navy reserves officers on Sunday
> publicly called on Israel to allow an external probe
> into its commando raid of a Gaza-bound humanitarian aid
> flotilla last week, which left nine people dead and
> several more wounded.
>
> In a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and
> Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi,
> the Navy officers denounced the commando raid as having
> "ended in tragedy both at the military and diplomatic
> levels."
>
> "We disagree with the widespread claims that this was
> the result of an intelligence rift," said the officers.
> "In addition, we do not accept claims that this was a
> 'public relations failure' and we think that the plan
> was doomed to failure from the beginning."
>
> "First and foremost, we protest the fact that
> responsibility for the tragic results was immediately
> thrust onto the organizers of the flotilla," wrote the
> officers. "This demonstrates contempt for the
> responsibility that belongs principally to the
> hierarchy of commanders and those who approved the
> mission. This shows contempt for the values of
> professionalism, the purity of weapons and for human
> lives."
>
> The Navy officers' letter came as Prime Minister
> Benjamin Netanyahu was convening his top ministers to
> deliberate a United Nations proposal to create a joint
> international committee alongside Turkey and the United
> States to investigate the circumstances of the deadly
> raid.
>
> The cabinet was also to discuss the creation of an
> internal committee to look into the incident. Netanyahu
> earlier Sunday rejected the idea of an international
> panel, and reiterated that Israel had the right to
> conduct its own investigation.
>
> Netanyahu discussed the proposal for a multinational
> panel with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
> in a telephone call on Saturday but told cabinet
> ministers fon Sunday that Israel was exploring other
> options, political sources said.
>
> "I told [Ban] that the investigation of the facts must
> be carried out responsibly and objectively," Netanyahu
> told ministers. "We need to consider the issue
> carefully and level-headedly, while maintaining
> Israel's national interests as well as those of the
> Israel Defense Forces."
>
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