Senior Israelis Wanted By Turkey Likely To End Up In Israeli Jail First

Jerusalem, May 27 – Turkey asked Interpol yesterday to issue a Red Notice for a number of former top Israeli military commanders in connection with the deaths of ten protesters in a 2010 raid on a Turkish flotilla to Gaza, but Israeli analysts expect the group to end up imprisoned in Israel on various corruption-related charges before any international action is taken, in keeping with recent trends in Israeli politics.

The Turkish government seeks life imprisonment for all of the Israeli personnel involved directly or indirectly in the Mavi Marmara incident, in which a ship trying to break Israel’s naval blockade of the Gaza Strip was stormed and commandeered by Israeli commandos. The IDF continues to insist that it encountered violent resistance that justified its use of gunfire that killed nine and caused the death of a tenth from injuries this year. A Turkish court is trying various Israeli officers in absentia, a move that may prove moot at a time when countless former senior Israeli figures are being investigated, tried, and sentenced on corruption, ethics, and other charges that carry incarceration sentences.

Even heads of state or not immune, as two presidents have been tarnished by criminal allegations, with one serving jail time for rape. Myriad ministers have faced probes related to corruption and obstruction of justice, including prominent party leaders and the current foreign minister. Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was recently sentenced to six years behind bars for accepting bribes, which was only the most recent in a series of other, inconclusive investigations of similar charges.

The plague of corruption and misconduct has not spared the military echelons; one recent candidate for Chief of the General Staff had his nomination withdrawn after allegations surfaced that he had misappropriated public land and forged a letter libeling rivals for the coveted position. Senior law enforcement officials have also figured prominently in corruption scandals. It is widely assumed that graft thrives at every level, leading some analysts to predict that by the end of the decade, 90% of Israel’s politicians, generals, and other government figures will be serving time.

Turkish officials acknowledged the challenge, and suggested that political opponents of Prime Minister Erdogan could serve as alternative residents of the allocated prison space.