Turkish President Abdullah Gul says all members of a regional summit except Israel have denounced last week's deadly Israeli commando raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
Mr. Gul says representatives of 21 states meeting at the Asian regional summit in Istanbul spoke out against Israel's actions. Eight Turkish and one Turkish-American were killed in the Mediterranean raid.
Israel, the 22nd nation at the Istanbul summit, blocked a joint declaration condemning the military operation against the aid convoy. Mr. Gul spoke in his role as the host of the international gathering.
Israeli leaders say the troops involved in last week's predawn raid used deadly force after encountering resistance from people aboard the ships bound for Gaza. Israel contends that five of the nine people who were killed had links to Islamist extremist groups including Hamas and al-Qaida.
The activists' convoy was trying to break an Israeli blockade and deliver aid directly to Hamas-ruled Gaza.
Turkey and many other nations individually condemned Israel after last week's raid.
On Sunday, Israel rejected a proposal from U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to create a multinational commission to investigate the raid saying it would carry out its own internal investigation. U.N. officials said Tuesday their understanding is that Israel is still considering whether to bring "an international element" into the investigation process
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak told parliament the probe will seek to establish whether Israel's raid on the ship, and its Gaza blockade, are in keeping with international law. He said Israeli officials will draw conclusions on political and security-related matters.
On Saturday, Israeli forces peacefully seized control of another aid ship trying to reach Gaza.
