Ankara: Captain's testimony on Israel's raid already in UN system

According to the Turkish capital, a request from an Israeli commission investigating the storming of a Gaza-bound aid ship to speak with the captain of the ship, on which nine Turkish activists were killed on May 31, is not appropriate. 

Earlier this week, a spokesman for the commission said the testimony of Mahmut Tural, who was at the helm of the Mavi Marmara when it was boarded by Israeli commandos on May 31, was requested in a Sept. 12 letter to the Turkish Embassy in Tel Aviv.

“The testimony of the captain, the second captain and the chief engineer of the ship are already documented as part of Turkey’s national commission responsible for investigating the raid. They are all translated and presented in the appendix of the initial report presented to the United Nations,” a senior diplomat told Today’s Zaman.

“If Israel is so willing, and if the UN panel of inquiry approves such a request, then they may check the UN documentation to see whatever the captain has explained,” added the same diplomat, speaking under condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile, in New York a spokesperson for the UN secretary-general said on Tuesday that the UN panel of inquiry set up in early September for investigating the raid was expected to submit an initial report -- extremely technical and procedural -- to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday.