UNITED NATIONS: The international community must be given a "credible" role in Israel's probe of its deadly raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla, UN chief Ban Ki-moon insisted on Tuesday.

Ban's view is that "credible international involvement is crucial to a prompt, credible, impartial and transparent investigation" of the deadly May 31 raid on an aid flotilla, UN spokesman Farhan Haq told journalists.

Asked about reports that Israel has rejected an international inquiry into the incident that left nine Turkish pro-Palestinian militants dead, Haq said: "We have not yet heard an official response." Earlier Tuesday, Israel outlined plans to hold its own limited probes into the raid launched to enforce the Jewish state's blockade of Gaza.

The probes will look exclusively into the legality of Israel's naval blockade of Gaza and the raid on the aid flotilla, Israeli minister without portfolio Benny Begin told public radio.

Israel is reportedly considering setting up an investigative team made up of Israeli jurists and former diplomats as well as two foreign observers.

This would fall far short of the independent, international investigation several world leaders have called for in the wake of the commando raid.

The UN humanitarian chief on Tuesday said Israel needed to be persuaded to ease its blockade of the Gaza Strip, calling it “inflammatory.”

“We cannot make Israel do that ... we have to persuade Israel that it's in her interest,” John Holmes said during a visit to the capital, Canberra, for a meeting of donors.

He said the 3-year-old blockade “is an extra inflammatory aspect of the Middle East crisis. The effects it's having on the population of Gaza ... is devastating. There is a bit of a tinderbox there.”

Holmes urged Israel to accept that it must ease the border restrictions and said it was distressing that people died last week while on a humanitarian mission.