International Criminal Court to hear Mavi Marmara victims

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

DHA Photo

The International Criminal Court’s preliminary examinations office has accepted an application from the relatives of the victims who were killed in Israel’s 2010 raid on the “Mavi Marmara,” a Gaza-bound flotilla ship, according to the victims’ lawyer. 

Lawyer Cihat Gökdemir said the preliminary examination office decided to listen to all victims who were on the boat during the raid which claimed the lives of 10 people, recalling that their previous application was rejected by the court. 

After the rejection, Gökdemir said they appealed to the preliminary examination board, which decided to hear the testimonies of those who had survived the raid. 

“The survivors will testify in court. This is a very important development,” said Gökdemir.

In May 2010, Israeli commandos killed nine Turkish nationals and an American of Turkish origin in a raid on the Mavi Marmara, which was part of the “Gaza Freedom Flotilla.” Another person died in a Turkish hospital in 2014 after being in a coma for almost four years.

The convoy was organized and headed by the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (İHH) and was carrying humanitarian aid and construction materials for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which was under an Israeli blockade at the time.