The flap over Israel’s participation in the UN inquiry began Monday when UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told a news conference there was no “behind the scenes” agreement with Israel that the panel would not summon Israeli soldiers to testify.
Israeli officials responded by threatening a pullout, saying their agreement to take part in the UN probe — which represented a shift from its traditional mistrust of the United Nations — was conditioned on the panel relying on reports from Israel’s own military inquiry, not testimony from soldiers.
As the four-member panel met behind closed doors, UN spokesman Martin Nesirky did not rule out that it might attempt to talk to or get information directly from Israeli soldiers or officials from either side.
He stressed repeatedly that the panel, which includes an Israeli, will decide how to follow up on the national investigations. But he also said it is “crucial” that the panel “work and cooperate with the national authorities.” Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Tuesday reiterated the country’s opposition to having any soldiers testify.
Nesirky emphasized that “the panel is not designed to determine individual criminal responsibility, but to examine and identify the facts, circumstances and the context of the incident, as well as to recommend ways of avoiding future incidents.”
The UN panel is chaired by former New Zealand Prime Minister Geoffrey Palmer, cochaired by former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and includes Israeli representative Joseph Ciechanover and Turkish representative Ozdem Sanberk.
Meanwhile, Israel’s top military officer said in Jerusalem on Wednesday that Israeli troops were not ready for the violent resistance they met when they boarded a Gaza-bound aid ship and ended up killing nine pro-Palestinian activists.
Speaking to an inquiry, Israeli Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi gave the most detailed explanation so far of what went wrong with the military plan in the May 31 raid, which sparked a world outcry.
IDF commandos failed to clear the decks with stun grenades, and rappelled from their helicopter straight into a brawl with men wielding iron bars and knives, Ashkenazi said.
