GLOBAL JOURNALIST: Battle on Turkish vessel near Gaza Strip causes international controversy

Byron Scott, Professor Emeritus, Missouri School of Journalism: It’s not exactly clear what happened Monday when the Israeli naval commandos boarded six vessels bound for a well-publicized humanitarian mission and neared their Gaza Strip destination. Contradictory videos flooding news outlets and the Internet leave much room for debate. Nine deaths and dozens of injuries resulted in the battle aboard the flotilla’s leading vessel, the Turkish vessel Mavi Marmara. An emergency session of the United Nations Security Council produced one of many international expressions of alarm, censure and calls for investigation. Was Israel’s intervention an act of piracy or was it within the bounds of international law? Is the blockade of Gaza — begun in 2007 — justified and effective or a continuing and growing diplomatic embarrassment for Israel and its allies, including the United States?