UN experts accuse Israel of suppressing flotilla footage

Former International Criminal Court judge says Israel appeared to try and "have monopoly on versions as to what existed."

By ASSOCIATED PRESS, JPOST.COM STAFF
UN Flotilla Committee 311 (photo credit: Associated Press)
UN Flotilla Committee 311
(photo credit: Associated Press)
GENEVA — An independent panel investigating Israel's boarding of the Gaza-bound aid flotilla on May 31 said Israel is suppressing footage of the incident it seized from the passengers.
The UN-appointed experts said Israeli soldiers confiscated still photos and video material from more than two dozen journalists and others aboard the flotilla during the raid in which nine Turkish activists were killed.
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Karl T. Hudson-Phillips, a former judge at the International Criminal Court, told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday that Israel appeared to be trying to "control information and to have monopoly on versions as to what existed."
Israel has dismissed the report, claiming the UN Human Rights Council that commissioned it is biased.
The comments come after the US State Department expressed concern that the UN Human Rights Council report on the Gaza flotilla could be used to stop the peace process, according to an AFP report.
"We are concerned with the tone, content and conclusions of the report," US envoy to the UN Human Rights Committee Eileen Chamberlain reportedly told the organization.