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President: UN report on Flotilla of Freedom unimportant for Turkey

Türkiye Materials 2 September 2011 18:58 (UTC +04:00)
The UN report on "Flotilla of Freedom" is of no importance for Turkey, the Sabah newspaper quotes the Turkish President Abdullah Gul as saying.
President: UN report on Flotilla of Freedom unimportant for Turkey

Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept.2 / Trend /

The UN report on "Flotilla of Freedom" is of no importance for Turkey, the Sabah newspaper quotes the Turkish President Abdullah Gul as saying.

He said Israel is in a bad strategic situation. He added that the measures taken against the Israeli authorities were the first step. Depending on Tel Aviv's actions, Ankara will further take other appropriate steps to punish crimes committed against the Turkish citizens.

The UN came to a conclusion that the naval blockade of the Gaza Strip during the capture of the Turkish "Flotilla of Freedom" was legitimate, but the force used is excessive, The New York Times reports.

Relations between Turkey and Israel -- two strategic and military partners -- worsened after Israeli naval attacks on the "Flotilla of Freedom" carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza on May 31.

Nine Turks fell victim to a confrontation between Israeli soldiers and international human rights activists on the Turkish ship.
Ankara later demanded that Israel issue an official apology, order an independent international investigation, and pay compensation.

There was hope for the restoration of bilateral relations in December last year, when Turkey sent two aircrafts to help Israel in the fight against Israel's largest forest fire in country's history, which claimed at least 41 lives.

However, later Turkish officials said that Ankara would only restore relations with Israel after a formal apology, which Tel Aviv has refused.

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