THE death toll has risen to 19 after an an attack on the Freedom Flotilla sailing from Cyprus to Gaza, by Israeli commandos.
They stormed at least one ship, the Turkish vessel Mavi Marmora 65 kilometres off the Gaza coast. The ship was loaded with pro-Palestinian activists and international dignitaries and much needed supplies.
The Turkish government has summoned the Israeli ambassador for an explanation for the piracy that is taking place on the high seas, and large numbers of Turkish policemen are now guarding the Israeli embassy in Ankara.
Israel’s army radio reported that at least 14 people had been killed in clashes that broke out after the unarmed passengers allegedly tried to grab weapons off the the heavily naval commandos, who descended on the boat from helicopters and boarded from speedboats.
At least 30 other international supporters of the Palestinian people were injured in the attack.
Israel radio said at least one vessel was boarded by Israeli troops backed by helicopters.
An unnamed Arab journalist travelling with the flotilla reported that shooting was taking place.
Hamas-run TV showed pictures of the wounded.
Gaza’s Al-Aqsa television also showed footage of black-clad Israeli commandos descending from helicopters and clashing with activists.
The Israeli military tried to deny that its forces had attacked the boats but said they would enforce the decision to keep them away from Gaza.
Ismail Haniya, Prime Minister of the Gaza government condemned the ‘brutal’ Israeli attack, adding: ‘We call on the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, to shoulder his responsibilities to protect the safety of the solidarity groups who were on board these ships and to secure their way to Gaza.’
Earlier, three Israeli missile boats left their naval base in the northern coastal city of Haifa on a mission to intercept the Freedom Flotilla, reporters on board one of the vessels told Gulf News before being told to turn off their phones.
Gulf News reporter Abbas Al Lawati was on board the Turkish vessel Mavi Marmara, which was attacked by Israeli forces.
He lost contact with the Gulf News office when the Israelis blocked communication but had been sending live updates up to that point.
As the attack began emergency teams were distributing life jackets to people on board the six Gaza aid ships.
Some passengers were seen wearing gas masks and sirens were heard before communication systems were jammed, making it difficult to reach anyone on board.
Later reports confirmed that the Mavi Marmara the Turkish ship that was leading the flotilla was being fired on before it was boarded and that the captain had been wounded.
The Al Jazeera broadcast from the ship ended with a voice shouting in Hebrew, ‘Everybody shut up!’
A Turkish website showed a video of pandemonium on board one of the ships, with activists in orange life jackets running around as some tried to help an activist apparently unconscious on the deck.
The site also showed a video of an Israeli helicopter flying overhead and Israeli warships nearby.
In Gaza, anti-siege activists called on the international community to ensure the protection of the ‘Freedom Flotilla’ which had been aiming to arrive on Saturday but was repeatedly delayed.
Israel has extended the military zone it has designated off Gaza from 20 nautical miles to 68 miles, one of the organisers of the Freedom Flotilla said on Sunday.
Professor Norman Baech, a German international law expert and former member of the German parliament who is on the Mavi Marmara, said that states that feel threatened often extend naval military zones up to 68 miles beyond their coasts. Israel’s jurisdiction over Gaza’s territorial waters are however disputed. Gaza is considered occupied by the international community but not by Israel, which does now allow Israel to justify its practices under its own laws.
It is believed that the military zone has been extended to pursue the flotilla in international waters, and away from the coast of Gaza. While Israel has in the past pursued such aid boats in international waters, the move could be an attempt to have a legal cover.
The flotilla consists of six vessels that are attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza in defiance of Israel’s naval blockade of the territory.
Baech said that such moves are only justifiable if states feel threatened. ‘We are no threat to Israel. We are only carrying humanitarian aid.’
The Mavi Marmara, the largest passenger ship in the flotilla is carrying more than 550 passengers including two members of the Bundestag, the German parliament, and one Swedish member of parliament, who were transferred to the ship from the Challenger I.
The Challenger I was barred by the authorities in south Cyprus from leaving its ports to join the flotilla. Only after the intervention of the German and Turkish government were its passengers allowed to exit from the Turkish controlled North Cyprus.
The Free Gaza Movement, the organisers of the flotilla, said the troops opened fire as soon as they stormed the ships.
They also said the ships were now being towed to the Israeli town of Haifa, instead of Ashdod to avoid waiting journalists.
Earlier, the Israeli navy had contacted the captain of the Mavi Marmara, asking him to identify himself and say where the ship was headed.
Shortly after, two Israeli naval vessels had flanked the flotilla on either side, but at a distance.
Organisers of the flotilla carrying 10,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid then diverted their ships and slowed down to avoid a confrontation during the night.
They also issued all passengers life jackets and asked them to remain below deck.
l Thousands of Turkish protesters tried to storm the Israeli consulate in Istanbul soon after the news of the operation broke. The protesters shouted ‘Damn Israel’ as police blocked them.
Turkey is also reported to have summoned the Israeli ambassador to lodge a protest.
Meanwhile, Ismail Haniya, the Gaza PM, has dubbed the Israeli action as ‘barbaric’.
Hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists, including a Nobel laureate and several European legislators, are with the flotilla.
The flotilla had set sail from a port in Cyprus on Sunday and aimed to reach Gaza by Monday morning.
Israel said the boats were embarking on ‘an act of provocation’ against the Israeli military, rather than providing aid, and that it had issued warrants to prohibit their entrance to Gaza.
It asserted that the flotilla would be breaking international law by landing in Gaza, a claim the organisers rejected.
The Freedom Flotilla of six ships had left Cyprus for Gaza by mid-afternoon, in spite of numerous technical and logistical issues, organisers said.
Israeli officials vowed to intercept the overseas aid convoy 68 nautical miles off shore, ‘by force if necessary,’ and an anti-flotilla group also cast anchor to attempt a protest and convince the crews to return home.
Israel had deployed a sizeable naval force at Haifa Port to ‘prevent precedent of opening an unsupervised maritime route to Gaza,’ Israeli media reported on Sunday.
According to the Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, Israel’s decision to bar the Freedom Flotilla, carrying reconstruction material and school supplies barred from entry into Gaza by Israel, was to prevent a regular Turkey-Gaza line, alleging that Hamas would be able to receive ‘Iranian money’, heavy rockets and anti-aircraft missiles.
However, various UN bodies have called on Israel to permit the entry of the flotilla, and have repeatedly called for the lifting of Israel’s blockade on the coastal enclave, which one UN Development Programme report said three-quarters remained in disrepair almost 16 months after the end of a devastating Israeli assault on Gaza, as it maintains it siege.
The Israeli naval force reportedly includes a Hanit warship, one of the navy’s most advanced missile boats, which will be the first to intercept the fleet, the daily wrote. The force will be headed by deputy commander of the navy’s missile boats flotilla, and he will command the Shayetet 13 forces and naval officers as required, Israeli media reported.
‘This is a relatively simple mission, the likes of which we have carried out a number of times in the past, even against armed terrorists,’ a Navy source by one of the boats told the daily. ‘The reason we are deploying such a large force and after much preparation, is to minimise the PR damage we may suffer while carrying out the main mission, which is to prevent the precedent of opening an unsupervised maritime route to Hamas in Gaza.’
‘Experience shows that a large number of forces diminishes the volume of violence needed to carry out the mission,’ a Navy statement said, the online version of the newspaper quoted.
‘The mission is relatively simple and we are aware that the other side will try to make us look bad. We will show restraint and not respond to provocations, we will do only what is necessary to carry out the mission, no more, but no less either.’
Apparently this required the murder of peaceful, unarmed protesters.
