Monday, May 31, 2010

There really is only one story today. The "Freedom" Flotilla. And the coverage is overwhelming.

(Peace Activist - exactly as portrayed -

the knife is for opening the aid packages!)

(other parts of the "arsenal" of a typical peace activist)

Behind all the hype, violence and headlines, here is a useful summary of the story from the Canada-Israel Committee:

1. Israeli sailors, attempting to board one of the six ships of the protest flotilla en route to Gaza, were attacked by dozens of activists armed with knives, metal bars, and handguns. Fearing for their lives, the Israeli soldiers had no choice but to respond. At least four Israeli personnel were wounded by various means, including by gunfire from activists.
   
2. Israel made every effort to provide the flotilla organizers with an opportunity to avoid a confrontation. Israel offered to bring the flotilla into the port of Ashdod, and to transfer their aid to Gaza following appropriate security checks. The organizers rejected this offer, stating clearly that "this mission is not about delivering humanitarian supplies, it's about breaking Israel's siege." (Greta Berlin, AFP, 27 May 10).
   
3. Israel gave repeated warning of the maritime blockade in effect off the coast of Gaza and that the flotilla would be turned away and brought to an Israeli port to offload their cargo.
   
4. The organizers of the protest deliberately invited a confrontation with Israeli sailors. This was not an aid mission, but a PR stunt designed to undermine Israel and bolster Hamas, internationally recognized as a terrorist organization. Among the protestors were a group of highly-trained extremists with links to the Muslim Brotherhood and jihadist groups in Afghanistan.
   
5. There is no blockade on humanitarian aid to Gaza. In fact, Israel delivers 15,000 tons of humanitarian aid – including medical supplies, food, and water – to Gaza every week. The blockade exists to prevent unauthorized individuals and unknown cargo from entering Gaza and falling into the hands of its ruling Hamas regime.
6. Hamas is presently smuggling in massive amounts of military supplies into Gaza to fortify its positions and continue its attacks. Under international law Israel has the right to intercept vehicles that are "believed on reasonable grounds to be carrying contraband or breaching a blockade, and after prior warning they intentionally and clearly refuse to stop, or intentionally and clearly resist visit, search or capture." (Section 67A of the San Remo Manual on International Law Applicable to Armed Conflicts at Sea).

In my opinion, however, if you really want to know the intent of these "peaceniks", you can forget the foregoing. and simply consider the fact that the organizers of the Flotilla turned down a very simple and basic offer by the family of kidnapped, held in isolation for 4 years with no Red Cross visits, etc., Gilad Schalit. See the first 2 paragraphs of this article from alJazeera.com- hardly a bastion of pro-Israel sentiment or propaganda.

In any event, I do not think that there is anything original I can add. I will refer you to the following excellent sources (though several of them are from the site Jihad Watch, they in turn refer to other articles). Use this information to defend Israel's actions and resist the world's shameful hypocrisy.

• The Muqata: Anti-Shalit Flotilla Updates
• Gaza jihad flotilla participants chanted Islamic battle cry invoking Muhammad's massacre of Jews - Jihad Watch
• Commentary » Blog Archive » Useful Idiots at Sea
• Straight into the trap - Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News
• Commentary » Blog Archive » J Street Weighs In
• Hypocrites the world over condemn Israel for defending itself against jihad flotilla - Jihad Watch
• Facebook Meets the Flotilla | Daniel Gordis - Dispatches from an Anxious State
• Geller: The Jihad Flotilla and the Media War Against Israel - Jihad Watch
• Video: Flotilla jihadists attacking IDF soldiers - Jihad Watch
• Hamas projects its own guilt on Israel, decrying "state-sponsored terrorism" and "crimes against humanity" - Jihad Watch

In the meantime, I am thinking of organizing a flotilla of my own. It will sail for Turkey. Its purpose will be to publicize the plight of the Kurds under the Turkish Government and speak for their immediate independence. And while we are there, we will hold some public discussions about the unquestioned Turkish genocide of the Armenians after World War I. But leave the clubs, knives, etc. at home - it will be a peaceful event. Let's see how the Turks handle this.