Human Rights Council condemns Gaza flotilla raid
A fact-finding mission of the United Nations Human Rights Council says Israel violated international law during and after a raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla in May.
A report published by the Geneva-based HRC on Wednesday described the naval blockade of the Palestinian territory as “unlawful” because a humanitarian crisis was taking place there at the time.
The three-member expert panel said Israel’s military response to the flotilla was “disproportionate” and “betrayed an unacceptable level of brutality”.
Eight Turkish activists and one Turkish-American were killed in the raid.
Israel says the soldiers acted in self-defence. In a reaction to the report, the Israeli foreign ministry said the HRC had taken a “partisan, politicised and extreme” stance. But it said it would study the report.
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