The Turkish organization IHH's involvement in funding the Mavi Marmara's attempt to sabotage the Israeli blockade of Gaza is more evidence that Turkey is more and more becoming one of the bastions of radical Islamic terror in the Middle East which is a drastic significant shift from its longstanding moderate stance.
We now know that Turkey's own Prime Minister had ties to the Mavi Marmara ship that was headed for Gaza. This revelation certainly clinches the widespread perception in the Middle East that Turkey is no longer a moderate nation which Israel could count on for bilateral ties.
The New York-based publication Hamodia reported in its June 16, 2010 edition that documents seized on the ship demonstrate a connection between Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish officials and IHH.
A letter was found on the ship that was dated 10 days prior to Mavi Marmara's departure from the Turkish port. In the letter, an IHH representative requested the assistance of Turkish President Abdullah Gul to free an IHH member held in Israel. This letter reveals a cozy relationship between IHH and high-level Turkish officials suggesting that the Turkish government was well aware of IHH's hidden agenda in sending the Mavi Marmara to Gaza.
Passengers on board the Mavi Marma were more revealing in their testimonies with Israeli officials.
Some of the passengers stated that Recep Tayyip Erdogan personally knew of the Flotilla's intentions and did nothing to stop it. Those passengers stated that "the Flotilla sailed to Gaza with Erdogan's knowledge and blessings." According to these passengers, the Turkish Prime-Minister showed a personal interest in the Flotilla hoping that it would improve his status in the Arab world which he could exploit by using a confrontation with Israel to his advantage. Apparently, documents that were found on board the Mavi Marmara tend to support the contention of these passengers.
The documents found on board the ship also link the purchase of the Mavi Marmara to Erdogan. According to the discovered documents, the Mavi Marmara had been purchased by the IHH from a Turkish firm called IDO which was funded by the Istanbul Municipality. At the time the IDO was first formed, the Mayor of Istanbul was none other than Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Despite the evidence which reveals the Turkish Prime Minister's support of the Flotilla, others have told Israeli officials that Erdogan knew what the Flotilla was up to and tried to stop them unsuccessfully.
Either way, a picture is emerging which once again debunks any claim that this ship could have carried peaceful activists.
In reality, it is seemingly apparent that the Flotilla on the Mavi Marmara was in fact a state-sponsored Turkish operation backed by Turkey's very own Prime Minister.
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