According to Bozdağ, 230 students will attend private universities, while 270 students will be able to study in state universities in Turkey’s newly established scholarship program for Somali students.

Speaking at a meeting in his hometown in the Aydıncık district of Yozgat province, where he spent the Eid al-Fitr holiday, the minister shared information on Turkey’s aid campaigns in Somalia. Health is the urgent issue in Somalia, he said, and for that reason Turkey will set up five field hospitals equipped with medical supplies and health personnel, in addition to the existing field hospital, which was set up by Republic of Turkey’s Ministry of Health on Aug. 19.

In addition, he said the Ministry of Forest and Water also conducts searches for water in Somalia. “TOKİ [the Housing Development Administration of Turkey] will build houses for Somalis. You may ask where the money for this is coming from. The state has not spent a penny on this. Charity campaigns have been launched by the public, by you. These people are so rich in their hearts and ready to give anything to the needy,” he said

The report, as published by The New York Times, accepts Israel´s position that the naval blockade was a “legitimate security measure.” “By its very nature, it is not possible to accept such an approach,” Davutoğlu said of a part in the report concerning the blockade. According to Ankara, certain paragraphs concerning the way the Israeli army handled the operation during which nine pro-Palestinian activists were killed aboard the Turkish-owned ship the Mavi Marmara on May 31, 2010, actually stand as a record of Israel´s crimes.

“The loss of life and injuries resulting from the use of force by Israeli forces during the takeover of the Mavi Marmara was unacceptable. Nine passengers were killed and many others seriously wounded by Israeli forces. No satisfactory explanation has been provided to the panel by Israel for any of the nine deaths. Forensic evidence showing that most of the deceased were shot multiple times, including in the back, or at close range has not been adequately accounted for in the material presented by Israel,” says the report.

“At least one of those killed, Furkan Doğan, was shot at extremely close range. Mr. Doğan sustained wounds to the face, back of the skull, back and left leg. That suggests he may already have been lying wounded when the fatal shot was delivered, as suggested by witness accounts to that effect,” it says. “No evidence has been provided to establish that any of the deceased were armed with lethal weapons. Video footage shows one passenger holding only an open fire hose being killed by a single shot to the head or throat fired from a speedboat,” it elaborates.

A senior Israeli government official, who had seen the report, told the Associated Press earlier this week that those hit in the back were attacking soldiers when they were shot from behind by other soldiers acting to save their comrades.

Another Israeli official told AP on Friday that the report showed Israel’s actions were in keeping with international law. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Israel hoped the two countries could now “return to the cooperation that was a cornerstone of regional stability.”

“The panel concludes that there has been no adequate explanation provided for the nine deaths or why force was used to the extent that it produced such high levels of injury,” the report maintains, while stressing that Israel’s decision to board the vessels with such substantial force at a great distance from the blockade zone and with no final warning immediately prior to the boarding was “excessive and unreasonable.”

“Non-violent options should have been used in the first instance. In particular, clear prior warning that the vessels were to be boarded and a demonstration of dissuading force should have been given to avoid the type of confrontation that occurred; the operation should have reassessed its options when the resistance to the initial boarding attempt became apparent so as to minimize casualties.”

The report also notes that there was significant mistreatment of passengers by Israeli authorities after the takeover of the vessels had been completed through until their deportation. According to the report, this included physical mistreatment, harassment and intimidation, unjustified confiscation of belongings and the denial of timely consular assistance.

Leak ends US initiative for extension

Leaking of the report to the press ended US efforts aimed at getting another extension for the release of the report by the United Nations. During a bilateral meeting with Turkey’s Ahmet Davutoğlu in Paris on Thursday, when the two attended a meeting on Libya, Hillary Clinton voiced her willingness to postpone the release of the report for a month. In response, Davutoğlu said Turkey would not object to such an extension if UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon agrees to it.

However, when Clinton and Davutoğlu proceeded to the meeting on Libya, excerpts of the report had already been published by The New York Times. Upon this development, the US told Turkey it would be meaningless to ask the UN to postpone its report since excerpts had already been published.