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| Relatives of Flotilla Raid Victims Reject Compensation From Israel | Relatives of Flotilla Raid Victims Reject Compensation From Israel |
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| ISTANBUL — As Israeli and Turkish officials prepared for talks on Monday to restore relations, frozen since Israel’s deadly raid on a Turkish-led flotilla to Gaza, relatives of the nine people killed said Saturday that they would reject the compensation promised by Israel until it fully removes restrictions on the movement of goods and people in Gaza. | ISTANBUL — As Israeli and Turkish officials prepared for talks on Monday to restore relations, frozen since Israel’s deadly raid on a Turkish-led flotilla to Gaza, relatives of the nine people killed said Saturday that they would reject the compensation promised by Israel until it fully removes restrictions on the movement of goods and people in Gaza. |
| The relatives also said that they would not drop their lawsuits against Israelis involved in the 2010 raid, potentially complicating the Washington-brokered reconciliation between the two governments that began last month when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel called his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to apologize. | The relatives also said that they would not drop their lawsuits against Israelis involved in the 2010 raid, potentially complicating the Washington-brokered reconciliation between the two governments that began last month when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel called his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to apologize. |
| “Compensation and apology had always been government demands, not ours,” said Nimet Akyuz, whose husband, Cengiz Akyuz, was among those killed. “At this stage, we are going to see how sensitive and sincere the government really is about Gaza, the Palestinian situation.” | “Compensation and apology had always been government demands, not ours,” said Nimet Akyuz, whose husband, Cengiz Akyuz, was among those killed. “At this stage, we are going to see how sensitive and sincere the government really is about Gaza, the Palestinian situation.” |
| Added Cigdem Topcuoglu, who was on board the flotilla’s lead ship, the Comoros-flagged Mavi Marmara, and whose husband was also killed, “We consider claims that we would give up our criminal cases against Israeli commanders and other legal cases in return for an apology and compensation as an insult.” | |
| The families’ position could create problems for the Turkish government, which had demanded an apology from Israel, compensation to the families and lifting the Gaza blockade as a condition for restoring relations. | The families’ position could create problems for the Turkish government, which had demanded an apology from Israel, compensation to the families and lifting the Gaza blockade as a condition for restoring relations. |
| President Obama persuaded Mr. Netanyahu to apologize last month. Local news media have reported that Israel is ready to pay each family about $100,000. And Israel has eased restrictions on Gaza. The gestures seemed to set the stage for the resumption of normalized relations between the two countries, both important American allies in the region. Both share several security concerns, particularly regarding the civil war in neighboring Syria. | President Obama persuaded Mr. Netanyahu to apologize last month. Local news media have reported that Israel is ready to pay each family about $100,000. And Israel has eased restrictions on Gaza. The gestures seemed to set the stage for the resumption of normalized relations between the two countries, both important American allies in the region. Both share several security concerns, particularly regarding the civil war in neighboring Syria. |
| A Turkish diplomat, speaking on the condition of anonymity in accord with diplomatic protocol, said talks on Monday would take place regardless of families’ opposition because they concerned state matters. | A Turkish diplomat, speaking on the condition of anonymity in accord with diplomatic protocol, said talks on Monday would take place regardless of families’ opposition because they concerned state matters. |
| “We would come to a decision, a final agreement with Israel on compensation and it would be up to the families to accept or reject it,” he said. “It would ultimately be a political process and decision.” | “We would come to a decision, a final agreement with Israel on compensation and it would be up to the families to accept or reject it,” he said. “It would ultimately be a political process and decision.” |
| He also rejected the families’ contention that the government was dropping the blockade issue. Compensation, the official said, was “about Israel’s accountability for what it has done,” and was not being prioritized over the blockade. | He also rejected the families’ contention that the government was dropping the blockade issue. Compensation, the official said, was “about Israel’s accountability for what it has done,” and was not being prioritized over the blockade. |
| Mark Regev, a spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu, declined to respond to the families’ statements. | Mark Regev, a spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu, declined to respond to the families’ statements. |
| The flotilla, which was trying to break Israel’s military blockade of Gaza, was intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters when the vessels refused orders to turn back. When Israeli commandos boarded the lead vessel, a deadly fight broke out — Israel says the commandos were attacked first — and nine activists were killed, eight Turks and one American of Turkish descent. | |
| The blockade has been loosened since then, and restrictions were further lifted under an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire that ended eight days of cross-border violence between Israel and Gaza in November. But travel, imports and exports remain at a fraction of the level they were before Hamas, the militant Islamic Palestinian faction, took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007. | The blockade has been loosened since then, and restrictions were further lifted under an Egyptian-brokered cease-fire that ended eight days of cross-border violence between Israel and Gaza in November. But travel, imports and exports remain at a fraction of the level they were before Hamas, the militant Islamic Palestinian faction, took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007. |
| Sari Bashi, the executive director of Gisha, an Israeli human rights organization, said while imports between 2007 and 2010 were limited to “essential humanitarian items,” now everything but construction materials was allowed in freely. Agricultural exports have doubled over the past three years, she said, but remain about 2 percent of pre-2007 levels because of a ban on sales to Israel and the West Bank. | Sari Bashi, the executive director of Gisha, an Israeli human rights organization, said while imports between 2007 and 2010 were limited to “essential humanitarian items,” now everything but construction materials was allowed in freely. Agricultural exports have doubled over the past three years, she said, but remain about 2 percent of pre-2007 levels because of a ban on sales to Israel and the West Bank. |
| Travel from Gaza into Israel through the Erez crossing has expanded from “exceptional humanitarian cases” to include some merchants, family visitation and attendance at academic conferences, Ms. Bashi added, and exiting through the Rafah crossing into Egypt is generally open to all. | Travel from Gaza into Israel through the Erez crossing has expanded from “exceptional humanitarian cases” to include some merchants, family visitation and attendance at academic conferences, Ms. Bashi added, and exiting through the Rafah crossing into Egypt is generally open to all. |
| November’s cease-fire agreement expanded the permissible fishing zone to six nautical miles off the Gaza coast, from three, and provided Palestinians access to land near the Israeli borders that had been closed off. But some Palestinians have been shot by Israeli soldiers in the border zones — the military said they had approached the fence — and the fishing limits have been restored recently after rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel. | November’s cease-fire agreement expanded the permissible fishing zone to six nautical miles off the Gaza coast, from three, and provided Palestinians access to land near the Israeli borders that had been closed off. But some Palestinians have been shot by Israeli soldiers in the border zones — the military said they had approached the fence — and the fishing limits have been restored recently after rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel. |
| “The loosening of restrictions was a response to the quiet,” said a senior Israeli official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to do so publicly. “The process that was going forward has not continued to go forward because of the violence.” | “The loosening of restrictions was a response to the quiet,” said a senior Israeli official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to do so publicly. “The process that was going forward has not continued to go forward because of the violence.” |
| But for relatives of the flotilla raid victims, it is all or nothing. | But for relatives of the flotilla raid victims, it is all or nothing. |
| “We want the naval, land and air blockade on Gaza to be entirely lifted, not some free passage of few more goods through the gates, before any talks with Israel could begin,” said Ahmet Dogan, father of the 19-year-old Turkish-American who was killed in the raid. “We are constantly in touch with people in Gaza and there is absolutely no difference in the status of the blockade.” | “We want the naval, land and air blockade on Gaza to be entirely lifted, not some free passage of few more goods through the gates, before any talks with Israel could begin,” said Ahmet Dogan, father of the 19-year-old Turkish-American who was killed in the raid. “We are constantly in touch with people in Gaza and there is absolutely no difference in the status of the blockade.” |
Sebnem Arsu reported from Istanbul, and Jodi Rudoren from Jerusalem. | Sebnem Arsu reported from Istanbul, and Jodi Rudoren from Jerusalem. |
| This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: | |
| Correction: April 24, 2013 | |
An earlier version of this article misidentified the country under whose flag the flotilla’s lead ship, the Mavi Marmara, was flying. It was the flag of Comoros, not Turkey. (The ship had flown under the Turkish flag at one time.) | |
| Because of an editing error, an earlier version of the article also misstated the nature of the fighting aboard the Mavi Marmara, and it paraphrased incorrectly the Israeli assertion about how the attack had begun. It was a deadly fight; it was not a firefight because those aboard the ship were armed with weapons that included knives and sticks, but not guns. The Israelis said its commandos were attacked first; they did not say they were “fired on” first. |