Brutal killing of Turkish-American youth by Israeli commandos

Video shows brutal killing of Turkish-American youth by Israeli commandos

A video first published on a US-based online news collective over the weekend is thought to capture the killing of a 19-year-old Turkish-American during an Israeli commando raid on a flotilla of humanitarian aid ships in international waters late last month.

American journalist Dave Lindorff posted a video over the weekend on news website ThisCantBeHappening.net that shows Israeli soldiers brutally beating an aid volunteer before shooting him. The 21-second video depicts Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) commandos punching and kicking at someone on the deck of the ship and then firing four shots in the same direction. Observers say the victim is in all likelihood young Turkish-American peace activist Furkan Doğan; an autopsy on Doğan's body revealed that the man was shot five times from less than 45 centimeters away -- in the face, the back of the head, twice in the leg and once in the back, The Guardian reported. 

A frame from a recently leaked video clip allegedly captures IDF commandos beating defenseless Turkish-American peace activist Furkan Doğan before shooting him multiple times. 

The video also matches up with forensic accounts given by Turkish authorities to the victim's father, Ahmet Doğan, who told the press: “They told me: ‘Your child was shot at close proximity. Such wounds could be caused by a powerful weapon and a close shot.' However they said that they couldn't give me the full report until the official version has been published.”

In his report, Lindorff said: “This smuggled video, showing IDF commandos brutally kicking their captive, who is clearly posing no threat to them, and then firing four shots downward, shows these commandos were on the ship with intent to kill and injure, and that is what they did. They were certainly not kicking and shooting here to protect their lives. This looks more like a Rodney King moment than self-defense.”

Indeed, the video is among a growing batch of evidence, as footage captured by journalists aboard the flotilla slowly leaks out to the public, that the official Israeli version of the raid -- the commandos met with fierce resistance while boarding the ship and were forced to fire in self-defense, which has been universally contradicted by eyewitness reports from peace activists on board the Mavi Marmara -- simply isn't true. These latest images of a defenseless American being beaten mercilessly and then shot have created a stir. The clip was shared on social networking website Digg.com 975 times, and viewed by thousands. In comments listed under the clip and in reactions posted elsewhere online, angry Americans have called upon the US government to take action against Israel for the killing of its citizen under such circumstances.

Their complaints may go unheeded, however, as the US administration continues to respond only timidly to the actions of its ally Israel, no matter how illegal or inhumane they are. As Lindorff wrote in his report, “So far, President [Barack] Obama and the White House and State Department have made no condemnation of Israel's illegal and murderous attack in international waters on a civilian ship … of a NATO ally.” It remains to be seen whether this video will become a smoking gun in the evidence against the Israeli army, proving that the soldiers boarded the aid-laden ship of volunteers not just illegally, but with murderous intent.

17 June 2010, Thursday TODAY’S ZAMAN İSTANBUL