A Turkish court will convene on Nov. 6 of this year to hear a trial in which four top Israeli commanders are charged for their role in a 2010 Israeli attack on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that left nine Turks dead.
An indictment prepared by an İstanbul prosecutor seeks 10 aggravated life imprisonment sentences for each of the four Israeli commanders, including the country's former Chief of General Staff Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi. Eight Turkish nationals and one Turkish-American were killed when the Israeli Navy attacked an international aid flotilla trying to break an Israeli blockade of Gaza in May 2010.
A court proceedings report accepted by the İstanbul 7th High Criminal Court says one copy of the indictment will be sent to the Israeli authorities after being translated into English. The report also added that the court will also instruct the İstanbul Bar Directorate to appoint lawyers for the suspects.
The report also noted that the court will invite an expert who speaks Hebrew, adding that the first court hearing will be on Nov.6 and will continue on Nov. 7 and 9. The İstanbul court will also invite 490 complainants to the court hearings.
The 144-page Mavi Marmara was accepted last month by a court and mentions 10 “slain Turks,” including Süleyman Söylemez, who was among those injured in the raid and who is still in a vegetative state. The document also mentions 490 victims and complainants, including 189 people who were injured in the attacks.
The indictment reportedly seeks 10 aggravated life imprisonment sentences for former Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of General Staff Gen. Ashkenazi, former Naval Forces commander Vice Adm. Eliezer Marom, former Israeli military intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin and former Air Forces Intelligence head Brig. Gen. Avishai Levi.
The prosecutor reportedly heard the testimonies of nearly 600 witnesses, which included passengers aboard the ship and the relatives of victims as part of the investigation.
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.”
Ankara wants an official apology from Israel for the raid and calls for the lifting of the Gaza blockade but both demands have been rejected by the Israeli government so far. With tensions increased, Turkey has expelled the Israeli ambassador and suspended all military agreements it had with the country.
First Mavi Marmara court hearing scheduled for Nov. 6
A court proceedings report accepted by the İstanbul 7th High Criminal Court says one copy of the indictment will be sent to the Israeli authorities after being translated into English. The report also added that the court will also instruct the İstanbul Bar Directorate to appoint lawyers for the suspects.
The report also noted that the court will invite an expert who speaks Hebrew, adding that the first court hearing will be on Nov.6 and will continue on Nov. 7 and 9. The İstanbul court will also invite 490 complainants to the court hearings.
The 144-page Mavi Marmara was accepted last month by a court and mentions 10 “slain Turks,” including Süleyman Söylemez, who was among those injured in the raid and who is still in a vegetative state. The document also mentions 490 victims and complainants, including 189 people who were injured in the attacks.
The indictment reportedly seeks 10 aggravated life imprisonment sentences for former Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of General Staff Gen. Ashkenazi, former Naval Forces commander Vice Adm. Eliezer Marom, former Israeli military intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin and former Air Forces Intelligence head Brig. Gen. Avishai Levi.
The prosecutor reportedly heard the testimonies of nearly 600 witnesses, which included passengers aboard the ship and the relatives of victims as part of the investigation.
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.”
Ankara wants an official apology from Israel for the raid and calls for the lifting of the Gaza blockade but both demands have been rejected by the Israeli government so far. With tensions increased, Turkey has expelled the Israeli ambassador and suspended all military agreements it had with the country.
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