International law experts and lawyers of the Freedom Flotilla victims had met in Istanbul on 15 July 2010 to coordinate legal actions against Israel. The second of these meetings was held in Doha, Qatar. Seventy representatives from 20 countries attended the two-day meeting.
Representatives assessed the latest state of legal battle and discussed a series of strategies to be adopted. Domestic and international legal actions and organizations that can be initiated were also discussed.
Flotilla Justice Group formed
The participants decided to set up Flotilla Justice Group to facilitate communication among lawyers that are representing activists in lawsuits brought against Israel in different countries. The group will act as a coordination mechanism to ease communication and information exchange among lawyers defending victimized activists all over the world.
Turkish lawyers attending the meeting delivered a presentation on the UN report on the Mavi Marmara raid and the application to the International Criminal Court.
Chris Doyev, Middle East expert and director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding (CAABU), described the formation of Flotilla Justice Group as a vital step taken to hold Israel accountable for the crimes it committed.
Bettahar Boudjellal, a Qatar-based international human rights expert, said “Israel’s attack on the Freedom Flotilla breached international law and human rights law. Our efforts to unify the legal actions through a designated co-ordination apparatus will allow us to collectively bring the State of Israel to justice. More importantly, it will serve as a foundation for responding to Israel’s future violations.”
The organizations that attended the Doha meeting are the IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation, MAZLUMDER, Free Gaza Movement, the European Campaign to End Siege on Gaza, the Council for Arab-British Understanding, the Ship to Gaza - Greece, the Indonesian Muslims’ Lawyer Team, the Ship to Gaza - Sweden, the Muslim Lawyers Association of South Africa, the Elmadag Law Firm and the UK-based Hickman and Rose Law Firm.
