A contingent of Turkish ships has set sail for the Gaza Strip in order to break the blockade of the region and deliver humanitarian aid to Gazans.
The three cargo vessels left Istanbul on Saturday to join an international fleet organized by the human rights organization, Free Gaza Movement.
The seaport was overwhelmed by thousands of well-wishers, who had come to show their support for the people of Gaza, Press TV correspondent Hassan Ghani reported.
Before departing, the organizers from different countries, including: Greece, Ireland and Sweden, outlined their reasons for joining the project and warned Israel not to interfere with the humanitarian act.
"Even if Israel stops us, if we have to swim, we will swim to Gaza," said Noorazman Shamsuddin, one of the organizers.
The Israeli navy, which has prevented many ships from entering the coastal region, has told the aid vessels not to come to the Gaza Strip.
The Free Gaza Movement is coordinating with numerous pro-Palestinian groups in the Freedom Flotilla project. The nine-vessel flotilla is set to cast anchor at the docks of Gaza on Thursday.
The Freedom Flotilla convoy is carrying 5,000 tons of construction material, medical equipment, and school supplies, as well as around 600 people from 40 countries.
Since 2007, the siege of Gaza has deprived 1.5 million Palestinians of fuel, food, and other basic necessities.
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Salaam
Some comments on Western media (BBC in this case) coverage of the flotila attack.
BBC Complaint
06.14.2010 | Jews for Boycotting Israeli Goods
Press Release
150 people have signed an open letter of complaint to the BBC protesting at their biased, selective and ethically dishonest coverage of the murder of at least 9 activists on board the Mavi Marmara, the lead ship of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla.
Matters we have complained about included the use, without comment or even warning, of spliced and selective Israeli video of trained navy seals being ‘attacked’ at the very same time that Israel, by its own admission, confiscated every notebook, camera, mobile and reel of film to prevent its version of events being challenged.
Despite this some footage has got out which shows e.g. that the first navy personnel injured, often from bad falls, were actually medically treated by those on board. So much for the ‘terrorist’ label.
Other film shows the deliberate murder, with 4 shots to the head, of the Turkish-American citizen Furkan Dogan. http://www.informationclearinghouse....ticle25672.htm Naturally the BBC has chosen not to show any footage which directly proves that the Israeli version, whereby its trained navy personnel were subject to a potential lynching by human rights activists, was a lie.
The use of film media by one side, the side that has confiscated the other sides film and recordings, is totally unethical and an invitation to states to repeat the same trick in other situations with journalists.
The letter raises the way the BBC contributes towards a failure to understand the occupation and conflict in Gaza, preferring to engage in mainstream rhetoric about ‘terrorism’. How it mentions Hamas rockets without explaining who broke the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on 4.11.2008., who has killed over seven thousand people in as many years via its rockets and bombs (Israel) yet it is the puny response that is continually highlighted which has killed 20 Israelis in the same time.
The BBC’s record is so bad and so one-sided that we have initiated this letter - from people like Mike Mansfield QC, Avi Shlaim - an Israeli Professor of International Relations at Oxford University, Moshe Machover, another Israeli Professor at London University and people like the songwriter Leon Rosselson.
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Salaam
Some more analysis from media lens
Nine Civilians Killed - A Public Relations Disaster
We doubt there were any examples (we found none) of media articles lamenting the "public relations disaster" for Iran of the "kidnapping" of the British sailors. By contrast, the media has consistently focused on the Israeli attack in these terms. On May 31, Jonathan Marcus, the BBC's diplomatic correspondent, commented on the BBC website:
"This was always going to be a high-risk operation for Israel both in terms of reputation and diplomatic repercussions.
"Taking over vessels at sea is no easy task, even if the units carrying out the mission are well-trained, and it is especially difficult if the people already on board the vessels resist.
"The full details of what happened will emerge in time, but in political terms the damage has already been done.
"This was always going to be a high-risk operation for Israel both in terms of reputation and diplomatic repercussions."
I guess it was a higher-risk operation for the activists. To present the massacre as primarily a PR problem for Israel is beyond belief - 19 people [sic - a widely reported death toll at the time] are dead!
Sincerely
David Edwards
Marcus replied on June 1
Dear Mr Edwards,
Many thanks for your e-mail. Forgive me but I cannot see what is shameful about my piece at all. Indeed I think it presents a very fair picture of the implications of what happened.
Since you say you read my piece I imagine that you saw the excerpt from my longer radio piece which was posted on the BBC News On-Line site. I am the Diplomatic Correspondent here and my task was to look at the diplomatic/political ramifications of this incident.
The details of what happened were all over the BBC web-site and indeed carried extensively on our radio output. The BBC reported the reaction to this episode from Gaza, Israel and Turkey, something of which we should be justly proud, reflecting all shades of opinion. The introductory section of my piece, which you read, was intended to show that this was always likely to turn into a mess - though one would have hoped not the tragic mess that involved the loss of several lives. I stand by what I wrote and if you disagree then clearly you are at liberty to do so. I have added the longer radio piece below for your interest. Thank you
Regards
JM
This was always going to be a high-risk operation for Israel both in terms of reputation and diplomatic repercussions. Taking over vessels at sea is no easy task even if the units carrying out the mission are well trained and it is especially difficult if the people already on board the vessels resist. The full details of what happened will emerge in time, but in political terms the damage has already been done. The deaths threaten to make what was always going to be a potential public relations disaster for Israel into a fully-fledged calamity. But the political ramifications could be even more serious. A Turkish charity had a major role in organising this flotilla. The Palestinian issue plays strongly in Turkish public opinion where the tide is already strongly critical of Israel. This episode will only make matters worse.
Turkish politics is changing. Groups like the military who always backed strong ties with Israel now have less political clout. Relations between the two countries are ratcheting downwards with few pressures operating in the opposite direction to improve ties. This incident at sea also firmly puts the spotlight on Gaza and Israel's efforts to control access to the territory. Gaza is unfinished business with all three key players - Israel, Egypt and the United States all happy to try to isolate the Hamas government there. But as aid agencies warn this isolation comes at a price for the ordinary people of Gaza and this incident catapults their plight firmly into the spotlight.
We replied the same day:
Dear Jonathan
Many thanks. Your piece presented the killing of perhaps 19 unarmed human rights activists as, first and foremost, a PR problem for the killers. Why is that shameful? Several reasons. First, it is something you would never do if the victims were British, or American, or indeed Israeli. Imagine if Hamas fighters boarded a ship in international waters and shot dead 19 Israeli civilians. It is inconceivable that you would write:
"This was always going to be a high-risk operation for Hamas both in terms of reputation and diplomatic repercussions.
"Taking over vessels at sea is no easy task, even if the units carrying out the mission are well-trained, and it is especially difficult if the people already on board the vessels resist.
"The full details of what happened will emerge in time, but in political terms the damage has already been done.
"The deaths threaten to make what was always going to be a potential public relations disaster for Hamas into a fully-fledged calamity."
Your editors and readers would be outraged that you presented the massacre from the perspective of the killers, reflecting on the "difficult" nature of their task, even though they were "well-trained" (your implication), especially if people "resist". Your analysis soft pedals the illegality and horror to a virtual standstill, and presents the killing as a kind of legitimate police action that went wrong, rather than a criminal slaughter of civilians. Can you honestly not see that?
Your email continues in similar vein when you describe the killings as merely "a mess". Would you describe London's 7/7 atrocity as "a mess"? Was 9/11 a big "mess"?
Best
David
Marcus replied again on the same day:
In answer to your first line - no it did not - and you fail to accept that I was writing about one specific aspect of the story which was comprehensively covered by a variety of pieces from many people and many locations. I have taken time to respond to you but if you want to interpret my piece in this way, clearly nothing I say will convince you.
JM
Marcus's focus was repeated right across the media. The Observer commented:
"Was it good public relations to be seen trying to turn back ships carrying crayons for schools, medicines for hospitals and cement to rebuild bomb-damaged towns?"
(http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/com...cle7141295.ece)
The focus on PR downplays the atrocity by viewing the incident from Israel's perspective, by evaluating the cost to +Israel+. Again, this might seem reasonable enough, but the point is it +never+ happens in response to "rogue state" atrocities. Then, the emphasis is on condemnation, on the need to inflict damage through sanctions and bombing, not on evaluating any self-inflicted PR damage. In the immediate aftermath of the 7/7 suicide bombings in London in 2005, did any British journalist focus on the "PR disaster" for groups opposed to US-UK foreign policy? To even think of the slaughter in these terms would have seemed grotesque. The idea of a "PR disaster" implies a self-inflicted wound, which implies a blunder, feeding into the idea that the benevolent state and its allies make mistakes rather than commit crimes.
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Salaam
Heres a piece from the Private Eye
Letter from Israel
from our own correspondent
'We shall be the builders' starts one of our best loved folk songs. So, if some Gaza supporters dared sending building materials to those troublesome Palestinians in their ruined, boxed in desert enclave, we had now choice but to send one of Israels elite military units.
Hunger too is something we understand - or at least our grandparents understood it. So we knew how to respond when experts began to fuss about malnutrition among Gaza Strips 1.5 million residents. After all, Israel merely bans the entry into Gaza of minor stuff like lentils and pasta. Nevertheless, aid agencies claim that 65 percent of Gazan children are now anaemic and one in six suffers from stunted growth. John Ging, director of the UN relief and Works Agency in Gaza called on the world to break the siege and send food.
The would of course have been an unacceptable interference in the close Israeli-Palestinian relationship. So our government sent Colonel Moshe Levy, who heads Israels Gaza liaison office, to reassure reporters that
'the humanitarian situation in Gaza is good and stable'
sadly this did not make the issue go away.
Putting our best scientific minds to work, we next established the minimum amount of calories a human being needs to stay alive. And then adjusted the quantity of food we allow into Gaza to match that amount precisely.
This upset some even some of our diaspora Jewish supporters. Seeking to cheer them, Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu office started to circulate anonymously what were said to be Gaza lavish restraunt menus. Juding by those, Gaza was positively wallowing in food. shame that those alleged offerings of creamed spinach and beef stroganoff were quickly traced back to us.
Despite our nutritional help, Gaza Palestinians still seem to be a sickly lot. True, living in one of the worlds most over crowded places did not help, even before we carpet bombed their schools, hospitals and neighbourhoods in January 2009.
However, now that thousands of Gazans are living out in the open air, you might of expected their health to improve. Instead, some keep clamouring to be let out for hospital treatment. This is a grave matter, and our security forces guarding the exists form Gaza like to ponder it, for months if necessary. Rather than wait, some heart or kidney patients in need of intensive care die on us each week, just to be unhelpful.
What matters now is damage control. Letting the boat aid in, after all, and sending the Gaza supporters or their bodies home should mend fences between our unrepentant prime minister and a fractious Barak Obama. The US president cannot really stay cross with us for long: he needs US Jewish support in the November elections to the Senate and House of Representatives.
Years of Israeli PR work, though have gone down the drain: above all a costly ad agency devised campaign by our foreign minstry. Aimed at drawing wolrd attention away from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the campaign sought to 'rebrand' Israel by highlighting its success in stem cell research and its invention of instant messaging. Alas TV footage of Israeli commandos abseiling onto a relief ship sends out a different message altogether
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Salaam
Another piece from the Private Eye
The Book of Benjamin
Chapter 94
1 And it came to pass that the people of Gaza were sore
afflicted. For they were without bread to eat or fish to
catch. And even their very houses had been laid waste by
the children of Israel.
2 And their cries were heard in many lands, even unto the
land of the Turk-ites.
3 Who were meant to be friends of the children of Israel.
4 And the peoples of the earth said one to another, 'let us
build a great ark to provide aid and give succour to the
afflicted Arab-ites and Hamas-ites that dwell in the land
of Gaza'.
5 And they took on the ark all manner of goods, including
wheel chairs that were loaded two by two, planks of
wood that were four by two, bags of cement two hundred
by one hundred cubits and all that was needful to build
the city of Gaza anew.
6 And they named the ark Navi Marmara, which is to say
'come and get us'.
7 And on the ark were all manner of people speaking in a
multitude of diverse tongues. that is to say, Swedonians,
Hibernians, Netherlandians, Angles, Saxons and of course
Turkites
8 And there were even among them some of the children
of Israel!
9 And lo, when teh ship drew near unto the coast of Gaza,
it was seen by the Israel-ites who sent word even unto
their leader Benjamin, son of Netan-yahu.
10 And Benjamin waxed wroth and saith unto himself
'What shall I do with this ark? For verily this is a monster
coming from the deep like unot a leviathan who bringeth
death and destruction to the children of Israel.
11 Particularly when the Leviathan clearly contains
explosives and weapons hidden in the bags of cement
which were suppled by the Syrianites and the Iranians.'
12 And Benjamin speedily ansereth his own question, 'I must
do what we always do. Smite, smite and smite again. For is
it not written 'Smite is right?'
13 And so it was that, in the darkness, as the ark drew nigh
to the shore, and those aboard her were watching their
cement by night, the skies filled with a heavenly
host of armed commandos descending from on high and
proclaiming 'War on earth, ill will to men'.
14 Then the actv-ites rose up on the ark, seizing sticks,
knives, forks, spoons and whatever other weapons of
non mass destruction they could layeth theor hands on.
15 And they set upon the commandos of Israel who were
obliged to respond with the force that is called approriate.
16 And many of the activ-ites were slain, and even more
were taken into captivity.
17 And all the nations of the world (apart, that is from the
Obam-ites) rose up and cried with one voice, 'woe unto
Benjamin and the children of Israel. This time they have
goneth too far'.
18 And Benjamin laughed them to scorn saying, 'that is
what you sayeth every time. . . '
19 'But you do nothing.'
20 And Netanyahu looked on what he had done and saw
that it was good.
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Salaam
Just to add
“PUT THE PALESTINIANS ON A DIET”
MEDIA BURY DOCUMENTS REVEALING ISRAEL’S DELIBERATE POLICY OF NEAR-STARVATION FOR GAZA
Israel has been forced to reveal what Palestinians and other observers on the ground have known for a long time: that the blockade of Gaza is state policy intended to inflict collective punishment, not to bolster Israeli “security”.
An Israeli human rights group has won a legal battle to compel the Israeli government to release three important documents. These outline state policy for permitting the transfer of goods into Gaza prior to the May 31 attack on the peace flotilla in which nine people were killed by Israeli forces. The group, Gisha – Legal Center for Freedom of Movement, is demanding Israeli transparency. Meanwhile, Israel refuses to release documents on the current version of blockade policy which was “eased” after international condemnation following the flotilla attack.
The released documents, whose existence Israel had denied for eighteen months, reveal that the state approved “a policy of deliberate reduction” of basic goods, including food and fuel, in the Gaza Strip. Gisha Director Sari Bashi explains:
“Instead of considering security concerns, on the one hand, and the rights and needs of civilians living in Gaza, on the other, Israel banned glucose for biscuits and the fuel needed for regular supply of electricity – paralyzing normal life in Gaza and impairing the moral character of the State of Israel. I am sorry to say that major elements of this policy are still in place.” (Gisha: Legal Center for Freedom of Movement, ‘Due to Gisha's Petition: Israel Reveals Documents related to the Gaza Closure Policy’, October 21, 2010; http://www.gisha.org/index.php?intLa...&intSiteSN=113)
As Saeed Bannoura of the International Middle East Media Center reports, the Israeli government imposed a deliberate policy:
“in which the dietary needs for the population of Gaza are chillingly calculated, and the amounts of food let in by the Israeli government measured to remain just enough to keep the population alive at a near-starvation level. This documents the statement made by a number of Israeli officials that they are ‘putting the people of Gaza on a diet’.” (Saeed Bannoura, ‘Israeli government documents show deliberate policy to keep Gazans at near-starvation levels’, International Middle East Media Center, November 6, 2010 21:32; http://www.imemc.org/article/59843)
Bannoura adds:
“This release of documents also severely undermines Israel's oft-made claim that the siege is ‘for security reasons’, as it documents a deliberate and systematic policy of collective punishment of the entire population of Gaza.”
When Israel and the United States were reacting to Hamas’s election victory in Gaza in January 2006, long-time Israeli government adviser Dov Weisglass stated:
“The idea is to put the Palestinians on a diet, but not to make them die of hunger.” (‘Hamas readies for government, Israel prepares sanctions’, Agence France Presse, February 16, 2006)
The released documents contain actual equations used by the Israeli government to calculate the exact amounts of food, fuel and other necessities needed to do exactly that. (‘Submitted to Gisha in the framework of a Freedom of Information Act Petition, AP 2744/09 Gisha v. Defense Ministry’, Appendices B, C and D; http://gisha.org/UserFiles/File/Hidd...IAPetition.pdf)
The policy is all the more disturbing, indeed repellent, given that almost half the people of Gaza are children under the age of eighteen. One might reasonably conclude that Israel has deliberately forced the undernourishment of hundreds of thousands of children in direct violation of international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Media Response? A Polite Silence
Our searches of the Nexis newspaper database show that, as far as we could determine, not a single UK newspaper has reported the release of these ****ing Israeli documents. We widened our searches to include all English-language publications covered worldwide by Nexis. We found just two: one from the Palestine News Network on October 21 and one in Palestine Chronicle on November 6.
We were so surprised by the uniform silence across the English-language press that we asked US-based media analyst David Peterson to check our findings. He was able to do so, spelling out his search results as follows (email to Media Lens, November 11, 2010):
Major World Publications: zero
All News (English): two (the same two that we found, as mentioned above)
Broadcast Transcripts: zero
A search of the Factiva database (covering all major English-language newspapers and wire services) found the same results. Peterson commented:
“No mentions in any of the major English-language newspapers or wire services of the fact that someone had revealed the actual Israeli government policy towards the Gaza Palestinians is to force a ‘deliberate reduction’ in their access to the necessities of everyday survival.”
It takes a peculiar form of social malaise for this astonishing media silence to be maintained in ostensibly free societies.
The Fiercely “Independent” BBC
On November 11, an online BBC article reported on the Gaza blockade but made no mention of the released documents. (Jon Donnison, ‘UN: No change in Gaza despite easing of Israel blockade’ BBC news online, November 11, 2010 Last updated at 00:25; http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11731695)
Reporter Jon Donnison wrote:
“The UN says there has been ‘no material change” for people in Gaza since Israel announced it was ‘easing’ its economic blockade of the Palestinian territory.”
Jon Ging, the head of UN operations in Gaza, said few people had noticed any difference:
“There's been no material change for the people on the ground here in terms of their status, the aid dependency, the absence of any recovery or reconstruction, no economy.”
Ging continued:
“The easing, as it was described, has been nothing more than a political easing of the pressure on Israel and Egypt.”
The BBC gave the final word to Yigal Palmor, a spokesman for the Israeli foreign ministry:
“Why is the border blockaded? Because the territory has been overtaken by a declared terror movement."
This assertion that the Gaza blockade is motivated by security concerns went unchallenged.
World News Today, presented by Zeinab Badawi on BBC4, broadcast a piece by Donnison along similar lines to his article. (BBC World News Today, BBC4, Thursday, November 11, 2010, 7pm; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwxZXfRTdj0)
We wrote to Jon Donnison and asked whether he was aware that the Israeli human rights group Gisha had obtained Israeli government documents confirming that the collective punishment of Gaza is based on politics, not security. We asked him:
“Have you reported the release of these documents?
“Will you be pursuing it in a new article?” (Email, November 11, 2010)
We emailed again on November 16 but have received no response to date.
Compare and contrast the BBC’s performance on this story with a new Foreign Office-sponsored piece on the BBC by news presenter Zeinab Badawi:
“Transparency, accountability of government actions is absolutely crucial. And frankly that’s the role of the media. You know, shining a harsh spotlight on truths and sunlight, after all, is a very strong antiseptic, isn’t it?” (‘Zeinab Badawi says freedom of expression is cornerstone of democracy in Britain’, November 5, 2010; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rQM-...layer_embedded)
Badawi added that “the BBC’s constitution means that we absolutely, +absolutely+ cherish and protect and fight for our independence. We don't even have an arm's length relationship with the government, we just don’t deal with the government at all.”
Badawi continued the self-adulation:
“It [the BBC] really is a vital, vital tool for the dissemination of information in all sorts of ways. All these things have really served to underscore that freedom of speech that we have in this country. And I suppose the BBC best epitomises that tradition.”
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
I don't understand why America and Israel can't mind their own business. They invade countries, kill hundred of thousands of people and ***** that they are victims. And when we hit back, that gives them an excuse to kill more of us. There ass'
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Salaam
Turkey Warns Israel Against Attacking Upcoming Solidarity Flotilla
As peace activists and human rights groups prepare for sailing to Gaza next month, Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, warned Israel against a new attack against the flotilla, similar to its attack against the Freedom Flotilla in International Waters killing nine Turkish activist and wounding dozens before towing the ship to Ashdod Port.
Israeli Yedioth Aharonoth reported that Davutoglu said during an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald that Israel has the moral and international responsibility to lift the siege on Gaza, adding that the UN-fact finding commission has deemed the siege as illegal. “Last year, Israel attacked the flotilla while it was 72 miles away from the coast, killed and wounded dozens of activists”, Davutoglu said, “The attack was in International water, the Mediterranean is not the property of any country.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Turkish Humanitarian Relief (IHH), stated that the Turkish ship (Mavi Marmara), which was attacked last year and the army violently intercepted the Freedom Flotilla, will be heading back to Gaza, and that the ship will carry the same name and is set to sail later in this coming May.
Israel has been contacting several European Countries and the United States in an attempt to convince them to discourage their citizens from participating in the flotilla, and to try to prevent the sail.
Davutoglu told the Sydney Morning Herald that his country will not attempt to stop the ships from sailing from its ports, but will advise the passenger on anticipated dangers. Preparations for the new Flotilla are ongoing in North American, Europe, Asia, South American, Australia and Africa. Approximately 15 ships, carrying more than a thousand persons, including reporters, human rights workers, technicians and activists, will be sailing simultaneously by the end of this coming May.
In light of the new announcement, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, called for a meeting of his Cabinet Wednesday morning to prepare a response. Netanyahu had previously appealed to the United Nations to prevent the flotilla from trying to enter Gaza, but the UN did not respond.
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Salaam
Turkey Warns Israel Against Attacking Upcoming Solidarity Flotilla
As peace activists and human rights groups prepare for sailing to Gaza next month, Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, warned Israel against a new attack against the flotilla, similar to its attack against the Freedom Flotilla in International Waters killing nine Turkish activist and wounding dozens before towing the ship to Ashdod Port.
Israeli Yedioth Aharonoth reported that Davutoglu said during an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald that Israel has the moral and international responsibility to lift the siege on Gaza, adding that the UN-fact finding commission has deemed the siege as illegal. “Last year, Israel attacked the flotilla while it was 72 miles away from the coast, killed and wounded dozens of activists”, Davutoglu said, “The attack was in International water, the Mediterranean is not the property of any country.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Turkish Humanitarian Relief (IHH), stated that the Turkish ship (Mavi Marmara), which was attacked last year and the army violently intercepted the Freedom Flotilla, will be heading back to Gaza, and that the ship will carry the same name and is set to sail later in this coming May.
Israel has been contacting several European Countries and the United States in an attempt to convince them to discourage their citizens from participating in the flotilla, and to try to prevent the sail.
Davutoglu told the Sydney Morning Herald that his country will not attempt to stop the ships from sailing from its ports, but will advise the passenger on anticipated dangers. Preparations for the new Flotilla are ongoing in North American, Europe, Asia, South American, Australia and Africa. Approximately 15 ships, carrying more than a thousand persons, including reporters, human rights workers, technicians and activists, will be sailing simultaneously by the end of this coming May.
In light of the new announcement, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, called for a meeting of his Cabinet Wednesday morning to prepare a response. Netanyahu had previously appealed to the United Nations to prevent the flotilla from trying to enter Gaza, but the UN did not respond.
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
El-Khoudary: Marmara anniversary should refocus attention on Gaza siege
[ 31/05/2012 - 02:36 PM ]
GAZA,(PIC)-- Independent MP Jamal El-Khoudary, the head of the Popular Committee Against Siege on Gaza, said that the anniversary of the Turkish ship Marmara's massacre has to pave the way for more intensive efforts to end the siege imposed on the Gaza strip.
El-Khoudary greeted in a statement on Wednesday the Turkish ship's martyrs and their families and the Turkish government and people and the Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan particularly for his supportive positions for the Palestinian people.
"Turkey is a model of coherence and integration between governmental and non-governmental institutions, and between the Turkish president and heads of government and Parliament who work in parallel for the support of the Palestinian cause,” he added.
"The Marmara massacre marked a milestone in the Israeli siege of Gaza and showed the Palestinian people that the occupation has partially eased the siege in the face of international pressure,” he said.
Khudary stressed that an end to the siege means opening all borders and allowing all kinds of goods in addition to reopening the Gaza airport and passage between the West Bank and Gaza.
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Court to hear 490 witnesses against Israel in Mavi Marmara case
Middle East Monitor
November 2, 2012
A criminal court in Istanbul is due to begin the hearing of 490 witnesses from 37 countries in the case against Israeli officials responsible for the murderous attack on the Mavi Marmara. Nine Turkish citizens were killed by Israeli commandos during the assault in May 2010. According to Turkish newspaper Sabah, the court will also hear the testimony of Haneen Zoabi, an Arab member of the Israeli parliament.
Israel's former Chief of the General Staff, Gabi Ashkenazi, the Air Force Chief, the Director of Israeli Intelligence and the Commander of the Israeli Navy are all charged with the offences committed during the assault on the Turkish flagged vessel which was part of a humanitarian convoy to the Gaza Strip when it was attacked in international waters. The indictments include attempted murder, causing physical damage, confiscation of the freedom of individuals and causing damage to the property of others. The prosecution has demanded the jailing of those accused in this case for terms ranging from 9 to 32 years.
Hussein Ouchar, representing IHH, the Turkish relief agency responsible for organising the convoy, told Sabah that the NGO will be submitting the UN Report into the attack as part of their evidence. "The UN Report emphasises Israel's use of excessive force," said Ouchar. "In addition, the forensic report confirms that the cause of death was live bullets fired from very close range and that Israel washed the dead bodies with unusual chemicals."
Re: Israeli forces attack aid Gaza aid flotilla, kill activists
Istanbul: Trial of Israeli officers over Freedom Flotilla attack
[ 06/11/2012 - 01:23 PM ]
ISTANBUL, (PIC)-- A court in Turkey started, on Tuesday, the trial of four former Israeli military commanders over their role in the murder of nine Turkish activists on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla in 2010 which was carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The first hearing of the Mavi Marmara trial will begin at Çağlayan Courthouse at 9:30 a.m. on Nov. 6 and it will continue for three days with breaks. The Criminal Court in Istanbul is considered the largest Turkish court in criminal matters.
Flotilla passengers from Turkey and other parts of the world, relatives of the Mavi Marmara martyrs and their lawyers will be attending the trial, in addition to Arab communities in Istanbul, and Hikma association that is concerned with the affairs of Arab communities, PIC reporter stated.
The Turkish Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) defined the case against four Israeli military officials as the largest international case in which representatives from 37 countries had been attacked.
The Mavi Marmara case is the common case of the human family which has diverse religious, ethnic and cultural backgrounds just like the colorful group that met onboard the Mavi Marmara, IHH added.
Judicial efforts have been made concerning the Israeli attack at the national level, IHH explained, adding that 40 countries in the United Nations Human Rights Council condemned the Israeli attack and found out after an investigation that Israel violated human rights and international law by committing the crimes of willful killing; torture or inhumane treatment; willfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health, arbitrary detention and arrest.
The report, approved by the UN Human Rights Council, confirmed that the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip is illegal, and that attempts to break the siege are legitimate.
The case was filed at the İstanbul 7th High Criminal Court on May 28, 2012 against Israeli commanders who took part in the Mavi Marmara attack after an investigation by İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The trial will continue for three days, and it will be closely followed by human rights observers from Turkey and abroad, media members, jurists and representatives of non-governmental organizations.
The suspects in the trial include former Israeli Defense Forces Chief of General Staff Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, Naval Forces commander Vice Adm. Eliezer Marom, Israel's military intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin and Air Forces Intelligence head Brig. Gen. Avishai Levi.
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