"We’re the only ones who believe them – and what they’re saying is true"

“The situation is that they’re so isolated right now that it’s not only that we’re the only ones who will stick up for them,” said an American official. “We’re the only ones who believe them – and what they’re saying is true.”

The official was referring to Israeli protestations – backed by Israeli Defense Forces video – that their solders were attacked by passengers on a ship headed for Gaza with humanitarian aid, when they boarded the ship in what the Israelis concede were international waters…

Observers of the process expect the U.S. to attempt to craft a resolution that doesn’t condemn Israeli directly and doesn’t establish any international investigation, like an earlier inquiry into Israel’s actions in Gaza led by the former South African Judge Richard Goldstone…

Others suggested that further probes may not change the initial reactions. “You can have an independent commission spend 3 or 4 months studying this thing and come out with something that is stunningly clear and factual, but it doesn’t matter,” said Miller. “People knew where they were before this episode started.”