Lawyer Marmara victims: Don't drop legal proceedings.

Mavi Marmara armed terrorist

Lawyer Marmara victims: Don't drop legal proceedings.(Ynet).Turkish and Israeli officials will meet on April 12 for breakthrough talks over compensation for a deadly 2010 flotilla raid, for which the Jewish state apologized last week, the Turkish prime minister said Friday.

Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc had initially said the negotiations for compensation of the victims' families would start next week, in remarks carried by the private NTV broadcaster.

"After the apology, we have the compensation (issue) ahead of us. A delegation (from Israel) will travel to Turkey on April 12 for talks on this," Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdodan said in an interview with the CNN-Turk television.

Ties between Israel and its closest Muslim ally Turkey plummeted in May 2010 when Israeli commandos staged a botched pre-dawn raid on a six-ship flotilla to the Gaza Strip, killing nine Turkish nationals.

Arinc declined to say how much compensation would be paid out by Israel, adding the exact amount would be clarified after talks with the lawyers of victims' families. But last Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized to Turkey, ending a near three-year diplomatic rift -- a breakthrough brokered by US President Barack Obama during his visit to Israel.

Erdogan accepted the apology "in the name of the Turkish people" but said the country's future relationship with Israel would depend on the Jewish state.

Israel now expects Turkey to drop legal proceedings over the case – in particular the high-profile trial in absentia of four Israeli ex-military chiefs by an Istanbul court that opened in November.

Prosecutors are seeking life sentences for the four over the night-time assault in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea.

"It's out of the question for the government to cancel the trial at the Istanbul court," Ramazan Ariturk – one of the lawyers acting on behalf of the nine Turkish victims -- told AFP.

"There is no return from the case which has to be concluded under the existing Turkish laws," he said.

The defendants are former military chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi, former navy chief Eliezer Marom, former military intelligence head Amos Yadlin and former air force intelligence chief Avishai Levy.

They did not appear in the dock, after Israel ruled that those who took part in the raid did nothing wrong. A diplomatic source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: "We'll examine all cases one by one."Hmmmm.......The apology was a huge mistake.Read the full story here.

Related: Will Israel now extradite the four Israeli officers accused of the Mavi Marmara deaths for trial?

Will Israel now extradite the four Israeli officers accused of the Mavi Marmara deaths for trial?

Will Israel now extradite the four Israeli officers accused of the Mavi Marmara deaths for trial?

Flashback November 2012 - The four on trial are :former Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of General Staff Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, Naval Forces commander Vice Adm. Eliezer Marom, Israel's military intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin and Air Forces Intelligence head Brig. Gen. Avishai Levi.

A Turkish court is set to start a trial on Tuesday deliberating the role Israeli military officers played in a 2010 raid on the Turkish vessel Mavi Marmara, which left eight Turks and one Turkish-American dead.

An indictment prepared by İstanbul Specially Authorized Prosecutor Mehmet Akif Ekinci last summer seeks 10 aggravated life sentences for each of four top Israeli commanders, including the country's chief of General Staff, involved in the 2010 Israeli attack on the Gaza-bound aid flotilla.

Talking to Today's Zaman, Hüseyin Oruç, the vice president of the Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (İHH), which was the owner and operator of the Mavi Marmara flotilla, said that “Turkey is the first country in the world that will take the unlawful Israeli actions to court.” He further called the trial “a very significant case because today will mark the day that the untouchable image of Israel will be damaged.”

Although reluctant to comment on a case that is under way, retired diplomat Özdem Sanberk, who served on the UN committee investigating the Mavi Marmara incident, said, “The decisions of the court could be binding in Turkey although one cannot comment before the final verdict is made,” while he also brought to mind that “Israel neglected the prosecutor's previous inquiries in the case,” adding that “nobody could prevent an individual's right to sue.

Referring to the case pending at the International Criminal Court upon the request of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHCR) September 2010 report, which described Israel's actions as “crimes against humanity,” Oruç claims that Israel “has been putting political pressure on the international courts” and the international community is waiting for the outcome of the trial in Turkey.”

The indictment seeks 10 aggravated life imprisonment sentences for former Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of General Staff Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, Naval Forces commander Vice Adm. Eliezer Marom, Israel's military intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin and Air Forces Intelligence head Brig. Gen. Avishai Levi.

Lawyer and one of the plaintiffs in the trial, which will start at İstanbul's 7th High Criminal Court on Tuesday, Gülden Sönmez who was also on board the Mavi Marmara, says that her “expectation is that justice will be served and the four Israeli generals will be convicted.” Stating that as complainants they want to “set a precedent with this trial and damage the status of Israel, which is a country that cannot be held accountable for its unlawful actions.”

She also mentioned ongoing cases against Israel demanding compensation from Israel in Spain, Belgium and Italy opened upon the complaints of people of different nationalities who were on board the Mavi Marmara.

The 144-page indictment mentions 10 “slain Turks,” which includes Süleyman Söylemez, who was among those injured in the raid and who is still in a vegetative state. The document also mentions 490 victims and complainants, including 189 people who were injured in the attacks.

On the other hand, in an official statement issued yesterday the Israeli Foreign Ministry called the case " a show trial and an act which has nothing to do with either law or justice." The statement further read that "to date, no summonses have been issued to the accused, no information has been produced to them, and even a symbolic attempt to allow the accused to present a stance or receive legal representation has not been made."

A large group is expected to observe the trial today. According to Sönmez, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and a parliamentarian from France's Greens Party will send observers to İstanbul and a group of orphans from Gaza will also be at the court.

“None of the four indicted generals has left Israel since a decision was made to open the case in May,” said Oruç. “[Israelis will] have to admit their crime and will send the criminals to international courts as a result of Turkey's judicial process, while saying that “Israel has to do it if it wants to remain a part of the international system.”

According to Sanberk, regardless of the court case, Turkish-Israeli relations will continue to deteriorate until Israel issues an apology. “If Israel had apologized in the wake of the Mavi Marmara incident, we would not have reached this point,” commented the seasoned diplomat.Hmmmm.......I wonder if they discussed this as well?More here.