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Israel to take part in UN probe of flotilla raid

Jerusalem–Israel announced Monday it will take part in a UN investigation into the deadly Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla last spring, in a departure from its traditional mistrust of the world body.

The move allowed UN head Ban Ki-moon to formally announce the creation of an investigation panel into the incident in which nine Turkish activists, including one with US citizenship, died after being shot by Israeli commandos boarding their ship.

“I sincerely hope that this will contribute to the peace process as well as improvement of relationship between Israel and Turkey,” Ban said. The four-member panel will be chaired by former New Zealand Prime Minister Geoffrey Palmer and co-chaired by outgoing Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and include a Turkish and an Israeli representative.

The flotilla had been trying to breach Israel’s three-year blockade of the Gaza Strip. Both sides have said they were acting in self-defense during the confrontation, which has strained relations between Turkey and Israel.

“Israel has nothing to hide. The opposite is true. It is in Israel’s national interest to ensure that the factual truth about the entire flotilla incident will be brought to light and the entire world, and that is precisely the principle we are promoting,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

Government spokesman Mark Regev would not say what, if any, assurances Israel had received from the UN chief.

Israel plans to send an official to participate in the panel’s deliberations and will furnish reports from its own internal inquiry, according to the statement. The UN announcement setting up the inquiry said it would “liaise (and) review the ongoing domestic investigation of both Israel and Turkey.” There was no mention in either statement of officials being called to testify before the UN panel.

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