(JTA) — The head of the organization that funded the ship at the center of the 2010 flotilla incident is reportedly the target of a Turkish prosecutor for his ties to al-Qaida.
The allegation is that Bulent Yildirim, the president of IHH, the Turkish acronym for Humanitarian Relief Foundation, provided financial aid to the terrorist group, according to reports Friday in Turkish media.
IHH funded Mavi Marmara, the largest ship in a May 2010 aid flotilla that attempted to breach Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Israeli commandos clashed with Turkish activists aboard the ship, and nine Turks, including one Turkish American, were killed in the melee.
The incident accelerated the deterioration of Turkish-Israel ties.
IHH denied at the time formal connections to Hamas, the terrorist group controlling Gaza, saying its aims were purely humanitarian.
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