I disagree with your assertion (editorial, July 10) that an “international investigation” of the flotilla incident involving Israel is the “best chance of finding out what really happened.” The last time the United Nations conducted a so-called impartial investigation, it produced the severely biased, one-sided Goldstone Commission report.
A more desirable choice is to allow Israel, a fellow democracy with an internationally respected judicial system, to proceed with its independent investigation commission. Comprising highly respected jurists and with the presence of well-regarded international observers, Israel’s own investigation commission meets the highest standards and deserves the opportunity to look into the flotilla incident without interference.
Also, Turkey’s involvement in this incident must not be swept under the rug. The once-flourishing Turkish-Israeli relationship has been eroding for some time. Today, the Turkish Islamic leadership has seemingly decided to look eastward to Iran and change Turkey’s historic secular character.
Israel begged Turkey not to let the flotilla leave Turkey, and if it did, to have it dock at Ashdod, Israel, where any humanitarian aid could have been delivered. Turkey refused, and bears responsibility for what happened.
Eliot Engel
Washington, July 13, 2010
The writer, a New York Democrat, is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and of its Subcommittee on the Middle East.
