Gaza blockade inquiry: Right man for the job

By his own account, Sir Geoffrey Palmer says his appointment to head an inquiry into the Israeli attack on the Turkish vessel Mavi Marmara has been two months in the making.

He will chair a four-member panel established by UN secretary general Ban Ki-Moon to inquire into the events of May 31, when nine Turks were killed after Israeli commandos landed on the Mavi Marmara, which was part of a flotilla aimed at breaking a naval blockade of Gaza.

News that Sir Geoffrey had been suggested for an inquiry was broken in early June by indefatigable Israeli commentator Barry Rubin, who labelled his account as a “scoop,” possibly because he was one of few in Israel to have heard of Sir Geoffrey and had visited New Zealand.

At the time, I suggested Mr Rubin was too tough on his assessment of Sir Geoffrey, seeing the anti-Israeli hand of Helen Clark in the UN’s proposal, which incidentally received big coverage in the international press, including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.

No one would suggest Sir Geoffrey, an expert on constitutional and public law, was biased against Israel and to my knowledge he has never made public an opinion on Israeli-Palestinian issues. I wrote at the time that Sir Geoffrey

would love nothing more than to debate with Israel's top legal brains, some of whom he has no doubt has run across within the precincts of the University of Chicago law school (academic home also to President Obama).

Another bonus is that Sir Geoffrey, who as Mr Rubin says “does not suffer fools gladly,” will immediately see through the sham rhetoric of the jihadists and their western supporters. His voluminous report would be well worth reading, and would give the Israelis plenty of breathing space to get on with the serious stuff of ensuring Hamas never becomes a threat beyond its treatment of the hapless people of Gaza.

In the event, Israel established its own inquiry headed by retired Israeli Supreme Court Judge Jacob Turkel; along with Shabtai Rosen, an international lawyer and diplomat; Amos Horev, a former general who later became head of Israel's Institute of Science, the Technion; Nobel Peace Laureate David Trimble, of Northern Ireland; and Brigadier Ken Watkin, the former head of Canada's military judiciary and counsel assisting the international investigations of the Rwandan genocide.

That inquiry is continuing. Meanwhile, Mr Rubin has revealed more on events aboard the Mavi Marmara, quoting retired Major General Giora Eiland, former national security adviser, whose report for the Israeli military says :

"We found some professional mistakes that were made, however there were also positive aspects. Specifically, the manner in which the Israeli commandos behaved, the decisions that they made and the way in which they took control of the ship.

There were at least four incidents where Mavi Marmara passengers shot at IDF soldiers. There is good reason to believe that the first incident of live fire shooting on the ship was by passengers of the Mavi Marmara. The classified suggestions that I made were accepted in an open and willing manner by the officers who received them."

Sir Geoffrey says he will be leaving for New York on Thursday to start the inquiry, which is expected to have its preliminary report ready within a month.

Sir Geoffrey has told interviewers today he is “honoured to be selected” and that his appointment is due to New Zealand’s degree of detachment from Middle East affairs.

“Our interests don’t intrude on others,” he says. Sir Geoffrey is already experienced in complex international affairs, as he represents New Zealand on the International Whaling Commission.