Apologize to the IDF first, then Turkey
The government of Israel has just apologized to Turkey for the flotilla deaths caused by Israeli commandos in 2010. Rather than just apologizing to Turkey, maybe it should also apologize to the young soldiers it sent. I doubt this will be forth coming as America has not demanded it.
On behalf of the government of Israel, here is an apology to the heroes of the IDF and their parents. It is an apology that should have been sent but never will.
We apologize sons of Israel. We apologize for sending you into harm’s way without knowing how to ask the right intelligence questions and without expecting the near lynching that you received.
We apologize for making you reinforce a blockade of Gaza that defies logic and didn’t prevent missiles landing in Tel Aviv, Beer Sheva, Ashkelon or Sderot.
We apologize for not foreseeing that such action would provide Turkey with an excuse to sever ties and would weaken Israel’s strategic position in the region.
We apologize for calling for action against Iran, but not realizing Turkey is an essential element of this plan.
We apologize for a former Defense Minister who apparently sought to further his own image rather than the safety of his own soldiers.
We apologize for sending you to intercept a ship sailing beyond the legal boundaries of Israel, despite it being against international law. We know this could now lead to you being sent to court.
We apologize for missing the intelligence that warned of the violent preparation taking place on the ship and that we expected a ship carrying over 600 people to surrender.
We apologize for sending you to battle without the appropriate weaponry and we agree that hand pistols against a boat full of rioters was probably not a great plan.
In fact we apologize for not changing tactics when the fiasco became apparent.
We apologize that you were sent ill-prepared and not in sufficient numbers.
We apologize for the poor military planning that put you in a position from which there was no option but to open fire.
We apologize to the parents of Israel who send their children to the army without question.
We know it is nearly Passover, the festival of freedom, and we know we acted like three of the four sons; wicked, simple and unable to ask the right question. For all of the above, we the government of Israel apologize.