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Just Journalism Update 11 August 2010 The Turkel Committee: How has it been portrayed? On Monday 11 August Benjamin Netanyahu appeared before the Turkel Commission, an Israeli inquiry into the deaths of nine passengers aboard the Mavi Marmara, one of the ships trying to break the blockade of Gaza. Just Journalism analysed the broadsheet coverage of his appearance, looking into how the issue of the inquiry's credibility was tackled, as well as to what extent evidence that Israeli soldiers acted in self-defence impacted the media's narrative. How has the inquiry been described? Following the May 31 raid of the Mavi Marmara, in which nine Turkish activists were killed while fighting IDF commandos, Israel commissioned two inquiries to investigate what had happened. The first was an internal military review, which found that the IDF soldiers acted in a professional manner but had failed to properly anticipate a likely violent response from the ship's passengers. The second inquiry, now underway, is the so-called Turkel Committee, headed by retired Israeli Supreme Court Justice Jacob Turkel, which is investigating whether Israel was justified under international law to both impose a naval blockade of Gaza in the first place, and to uphold it militarily during the flotilla affair. The Israeli government initially rejected requests by several countries, such as Turkey and Britain, that there should be an independent, international inquiry into the events surrounding the casualties aboard the Mavi Marmara. Israel eventually relented to external pressure and announced that it would allow its inquiry to be overseen by two international observers. Another concession came from the Turkel Committee itself, which was originally tasked with determining only if the IDF was lawful in stopping the flotilla and if its use of force on the Mavi Marmara was 'proportionate'. It was not going to be permitted to subpoena witnesses or draw conclusions about the individual behaviour of those involved in the raid. However, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, 'following [Justice] Turkel's demand to turn the panel into a full-fledged governmental inquiry committee with real teeth, the committee was granted the power to subpoena witnesses and documents, warn those who testify before it that the panel's findings could harm them, and hire outside experts in relevant fields.' As it now stands, only IDF soldiers cannot be subpoenaed by the Turkel Committee. To continue reading, click here. Who was responsible for the violence aboard the ship? Israel has always maintained that its soldiers only resorted to lethal fire after being assaulted by armed activists who had planned a violent confrontation. Video footage was released that supports its claim that its soldiers were attacked as soon as they descended onto the Mavi Marmara, and shows passengers stating that they wished to become 'martyrs.' Of the five outlets, only The Daily Telegraph's Adrian Blomfield accepted this version of events, alluding to how the IDF soldiers were assaulted on arrival: 'Israeli naval commandos, who were lowered onto the ship's deck by helicopter, were given a violent reception by a group of activists brandishing clubs and knives.' The Times' Sheera Frenkel, on the other hand, presented the opposing claims made by the two sides, without offering evidence one way or the other: 'Israel said that its commandos opened fire in self-defence after they were attacked by men wielding clubs, knives and guns in a planned ambush. Passengers of the Mavi Marmara said that there were no plans to use violence and that the Israelis opened fire before boarding the ship.' Vita Bekker, writing in The Financial Times, took a similar approach, contrasting Netanyahu's account - 'the commandos acted "in self-defence" after being attacked by activists with clubs, metal rods and knives'- with that of the activists, 'who have claimed following the raid that Israeli troops opened fire as soon as they boarded.' The Guardian article, by Harriet Sherwood, avoided describing who was responsible for the violence: 'Nine Turkish activists were killed in the bloody confrontation which caused an international outcry'. However, the article also mentioned that Israel's military inquiry found that 'the strength of resistance that Israeli forces would encounter on board the ship was underestimated', which hinted at the pre-meditated nature of the clash. Sherwood's quoting of Netanyahu also referenced the video footage: 'Israeli video footage of the raid, Netanyahu said today, exposed the lie that Israeli soldiers killed "innocent and clement peace activists". He said: "Our soldiers had been confronted with real threats to their lives, facing brutal attack with clubs, iron bars and knives - and, as you certainly have already been informed, firearms."' To continue reading, click here. Donating to Just Journalism Just Journalism is a not-for-profit organization and relies entirely upon the generosity of our supporters. If you wish to make a donation, please contactdonate@justjournalism.com for more information. For more information about Just Journalism, or to contact us, please visit www.justjournalism.com