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Free Gaza Boats Break the Siege of Gaza; International Support Crucial to Success
Two small boats carrying 42 human rights activists broke the siege of Gaza. They sailed from Cyprus in defiance of Israeli threats to intercept the boats to enforce its blockade of Gaza. The arriving boats were greeted by thousands of jubilant Gazans and former Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh. Intense international support was crucial in persuading Israel to allow the boats through.
Forty-two unarmed human rights activists from 17 different countries, including Jews from Israel and an 84-year-old Holocaust survivor, have broken the Israeli siege of Gaza by sailing two small boats from Larnaca, Cyprus to Gaza City. They arrived in the early evening on Satuday, 23 August 2008 to the cheers of thousands of jubilant Palestinians who lined Gaza Port. [Xinhua News Agency photo]
Former Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh came to welcome the Free Gaza activists. He said, “We call for more activities to break the unfair siege imposed on our people.”
As the Free Gaza boats approached Gaza Port, Palestinian boats went out to greet them. Jamal al-Khodari, head of the Popular Committee to End the Siege, was on one of the boats. Going out to thank the visitors for breaking the siege of Gaza, he said, “This is a great moment to see people supporting our cause to show solidarity with us and to tell the world a message that the unfair siege imposed on the Gaza Strip should end very soon.”
The international activists had been preparing for this historic voyage for over two years. They sailed in two small Greek-flagged fishing boats in a bold attempt to break through the Israeli naval blockade of Gaza which bars any ships from entering or leaving its ports. The boats were renamed SS Free Gaza and SS Liberty, the latter in memory of the 34 U.S. Navy sailors killed when Israel forces attacked the ship during the Six Day War in June 1967.
The 350-kilometer journey from Cyprus to Gaza took nearly 36 hours. The voyage was challenged by rough seas, approaching storms, and apparent jamming of the boats’ communications. The human right activists accused Israel of jamming their communications. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Arye Mekel denied the charges.
In response to Israeli threats to intercept and board the boats, residents of the San Francisco Bay Area demonstrated their support for the Free Gaza activists on Thursday, 21 August 2008. They gathered in front of the office of Senator Diane Feinstein at One Post Street in downtown San Francisco to demand that members of Congress use their power and influence to protect the non-violent human rights activists in the event that the Israeli Navy moves to intercept the boats.
With mounting media coverage in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and on the global Internet, it has become increasingly clear that any Israeli attempt to deal with the boats military would not go unnoticed around the world. The Internet “chatter” on the subject was a clear demonstration that the Free Gaza boats had attracted worldwide attention, and that the Internet was playing a crucial and revolutionary role in levelling the playing field between common people everywhere and the fourth most powerful military in the world.
In the end, the Israeli government decided to avoid a potentially embarrassing confrontation at sea by allowing the boats through to Gazan waters. It is widely believed that many Western diplomats quietly advised Israel to back down from its threats, while avoiding public comments.
All passengers had been carefully screened to ensure that no firearms of any kind were brought onto the boats. This was not only a challenge of purely non-violent civil disobedience to the Israeli naval blockage of Gaza, but it also provided a way for Israel to back down by ultimately acknowledging that the activists and boats did not pose any threat whatsoever to the security of Israel.
The astonishing success of the Free Gaza project has lifted the hopes of the nearly 1.5 million Gaza residents that the siege of Gaza can and will be lifted, and that this will pave the way for a just and peaceful solution to the 60-year-old conflict.
See also:
“Free Gaza Boats Arrive in Gaza,” Indybay, 23 August 2008, http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/08/23/18529017.php.
“Can International Activists on two Small Boats Break the Siege of Gaza?”, Indybay, 18 August 2008, http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/08/18/18527427.php.
Former Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh came to welcome the Free Gaza activists. He said, “We call for more activities to break the unfair siege imposed on our people.”
As the Free Gaza boats approached Gaza Port, Palestinian boats went out to greet them. Jamal al-Khodari, head of the Popular Committee to End the Siege, was on one of the boats. Going out to thank the visitors for breaking the siege of Gaza, he said, “This is a great moment to see people supporting our cause to show solidarity with us and to tell the world a message that the unfair siege imposed on the Gaza Strip should end very soon.”
The international activists had been preparing for this historic voyage for over two years. They sailed in two small Greek-flagged fishing boats in a bold attempt to break through the Israeli naval blockade of Gaza which bars any ships from entering or leaving its ports. The boats were renamed SS Free Gaza and SS Liberty, the latter in memory of the 34 U.S. Navy sailors killed when Israel forces attacked the ship during the Six Day War in June 1967.
The 350-kilometer journey from Cyprus to Gaza took nearly 36 hours. The voyage was challenged by rough seas, approaching storms, and apparent jamming of the boats’ communications. The human right activists accused Israel of jamming their communications. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Arye Mekel denied the charges.
In response to Israeli threats to intercept and board the boats, residents of the San Francisco Bay Area demonstrated their support for the Free Gaza activists on Thursday, 21 August 2008. They gathered in front of the office of Senator Diane Feinstein at One Post Street in downtown San Francisco to demand that members of Congress use their power and influence to protect the non-violent human rights activists in the event that the Israeli Navy moves to intercept the boats.
With mounting media coverage in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and on the global Internet, it has become increasingly clear that any Israeli attempt to deal with the boats military would not go unnoticed around the world. The Internet “chatter” on the subject was a clear demonstration that the Free Gaza boats had attracted worldwide attention, and that the Internet was playing a crucial and revolutionary role in levelling the playing field between common people everywhere and the fourth most powerful military in the world.
In the end, the Israeli government decided to avoid a potentially embarrassing confrontation at sea by allowing the boats through to Gazan waters. It is widely believed that many Western diplomats quietly advised Israel to back down from its threats, while avoiding public comments.
All passengers had been carefully screened to ensure that no firearms of any kind were brought onto the boats. This was not only a challenge of purely non-violent civil disobedience to the Israeli naval blockage of Gaza, but it also provided a way for Israel to back down by ultimately acknowledging that the activists and boats did not pose any threat whatsoever to the security of Israel.
The astonishing success of the Free Gaza project has lifted the hopes of the nearly 1.5 million Gaza residents that the siege of Gaza can and will be lifted, and that this will pave the way for a just and peaceful solution to the 60-year-old conflict.
See also:
“Free Gaza Boats Arrive in Gaza,” Indybay, 23 August 2008, http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/08/23/18529017.php.
“Can International Activists on two Small Boats Break the Siege of Gaza?”, Indybay, 18 August 2008, http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/08/18/18527427.php.
For more information:
http://freegaza.org
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Dear Friends,
We in the Free Gaza Movement would like to thank everyone who took the
time to contact the media, our embassies in Tel Aviv, and the Israeli
government. Your voices did make some difference. All of the fishing boats
that were accompanied by international human rights workers today were
able to finish fishing and return safely to shore. The Jerusalem Post was
one of the few media outlets that covered the attack. You can read their
article at:
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1220186497462&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Tragically, other Palestinian fishermen were not so lucky. According to a
report from the International Middle East Media Center, two fishermen
several miles to the north were hit by Israeli weapons fire. Mohammad Ani
Assultan, age 19, was wounded, and Hussam Assultan, age 32, was hit in the
head. He is said to be in critical condition. For more information see:
http://www.imemc.org/article/56793
It is vitally important that we continue to shine a light on Israeli human
rights abuses in Gaza and the West Bank, and continue to pressure the
international community to take action so as to prevent tragedies such as
the one that occurred today.
International human rights workers from the Free Gaza Movement and the
International Solidarity Movement will remain in Gaza, and we will
continue to shine that light. Below are the personal accounts of two of
these brave activists.
Israeli Warships Fire on Unarmed Palestinian Fishermen, by Vittorio Arrigoni:
"When at a distance, estimated by our fishing boat’s captain, of 7
nautical miles from the coast, we dropped our fishing nets and started
fishing the Israeli warships rushed to reach our position.
"One of the warships positioned at a distance less than 200 meters
alongside of our fishing boat, opened fire in our direction at least 4
times during the day. It was intimidating fire directed into the water,
but some bursts almost touched the hull of our boat. A cannon shot almost
reached us. Making attempt of obtaining a radio contact was useless.
Soldiers on the Israeli warship ordered, with the use of megaphones, the
area evacuation. And after that they were shooting. Sometimes they were
shooting before having ordered. Once they shooted to our fishing nets and
tried to damaged it sailing directly on them.
"Unfortunately our big mistake was not having with us neither cameras nor
video cameras that, together with megaphones to be used exactly like they
do, I consider essential for our next fishing missions.
"Despite these intimidations the fishing was rich and profitable, we
brought ashore quantity of fish ten times bigger than the usual
Palestinians fishers standard."
1 September 2008
Vittorio Arrigoni, Free Gaza Movement
http://www.FreeGaza.org
-----
Erez Crossing, by Donna Wallach:
"I along with others from Free Gaza Movement decided not to return with
the SS Free Gaza and SS Liberty to Cyprus and instead to remain in Gaza
Strip for a while to continue the work of breaking the siege. Throughout
the time I am staying here I will participate with the others in various
actions in Rafah, Gaza City, and other areas throughouth the Gaza Strip,
including going out in fishing boats to challenge the Israeli Navy
preventing the Palestinian fishermen from fishing more than 6 miles out.
In addition, we are re-organizing ISM Rafah, to do Palestinian led
solidarity work here.
"This past Friday a 64 year-old Palestinian woman from Beit Hanoun, Gaza
Strip arrived to the Erez crossing accompanied by all of the remaining
members of the Free Gaza Movement. She has been suffering for seven months
with a tumor on her spine. Without the necessary surgery granted her by
St. Joseph Hospital in Jerusalem, she will become paralyzed and will live
in contant pain, from what I understand. We, FGM members, walked in front
of her as a protection for her to not be shot by the Israeli soldiers
guarding their border. She was being pushed in a wheelchair. Slowly we
approached the Israeli side, holding our arms in the air and many of us
clutching our passports.
"A Palestinian man was the liason between Dr. Mona El-Farra and the
Israeli "authorities". Dr. Mona El-Farra was the main organizer for this
action of bringing this 64 year-old woman to cross the Erez checkpoint.
The Palestinian man kept on telling us that we needed to stop because the
Israelis told him they were going to shoot us. We decided it was more
important to challenge the Crime Against Humanity of Israel not permitting
this woman to receive the urgent medical treatment she needed, so we
continued to walk towards the Israeli gate with our arms up in the air. We
finally reached the Israeli gate without a shot being fired, not a bullet
not a tear gas cannister or a sound bomb. In the end though, the Israelis
heartlessly told the woman she had to go back home, but could return an
8th time.
"On Sunday 31st August, we from FGM arrived at about 9:00am from Rafah,
the southernmost area in Gaza Strip, to Erez crossing, the northernmost
area in Gaza Strip. We came to continue standing in solidarity with the
woman from the village of Beit Hanoun. We arrived late and she and Dr.
Mona El-Farra had already left for the border. We gathered inside the
crude fenced in area where all Palestinians and others wait for permission
to cross the dirt pathway to arrive to the Israeli gate. We waited hours,
then we heard that the woman was turned back again, with ridiculous excuse
that a member of her family must accompany her into Israel to the
hospital. This woman came back, yet was not defeated. Almost all the
members of her family have been wrongfully blacklisted by Israel, meaning
that they cannot enter the Apartheid State of Israel. Finally the woman's
75 year-old husband was granted permission to enter Israel with her. After
he arrived to Erez and the paper work for him was filled out, they went
off to the Israeli side. We continued to wait in the heat to hear that she
had crossed and was inside the Israeli ambulance that would take her to
the hospital and to her surgery which was supposed to have started on
Sunday. Dr. Mona El-Farra told us that she continued to tell the Israeli
authorities that members of the Free Gaza Movement were waiting at Erez to
ensure that the woman would enter this time and that we were willing to
die, we would walk again to the border even if the soldiers would shoot
and kill us, we would do what it takes so that the Israelis would allow
her to enter, which they finally did. The 8th time was the charm for this
very brave and courageous woman sitting in a wheelchair who defied the
Israelis with all of their gunpower."
31 August 2008
Donna Wallach, Free Gaza Movement
http://www.FreeGaza.org
We in the Free Gaza Movement would like to thank everyone who took the
time to contact the media, our embassies in Tel Aviv, and the Israeli
government. Your voices did make some difference. All of the fishing boats
that were accompanied by international human rights workers today were
able to finish fishing and return safely to shore. The Jerusalem Post was
one of the few media outlets that covered the attack. You can read their
article at:
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1220186497462&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Tragically, other Palestinian fishermen were not so lucky. According to a
report from the International Middle East Media Center, two fishermen
several miles to the north were hit by Israeli weapons fire. Mohammad Ani
Assultan, age 19, was wounded, and Hussam Assultan, age 32, was hit in the
head. He is said to be in critical condition. For more information see:
http://www.imemc.org/article/56793
It is vitally important that we continue to shine a light on Israeli human
rights abuses in Gaza and the West Bank, and continue to pressure the
international community to take action so as to prevent tragedies such as
the one that occurred today.
International human rights workers from the Free Gaza Movement and the
International Solidarity Movement will remain in Gaza, and we will
continue to shine that light. Below are the personal accounts of two of
these brave activists.
Israeli Warships Fire on Unarmed Palestinian Fishermen, by Vittorio Arrigoni:
"When at a distance, estimated by our fishing boat’s captain, of 7
nautical miles from the coast, we dropped our fishing nets and started
fishing the Israeli warships rushed to reach our position.
"One of the warships positioned at a distance less than 200 meters
alongside of our fishing boat, opened fire in our direction at least 4
times during the day. It was intimidating fire directed into the water,
but some bursts almost touched the hull of our boat. A cannon shot almost
reached us. Making attempt of obtaining a radio contact was useless.
Soldiers on the Israeli warship ordered, with the use of megaphones, the
area evacuation. And after that they were shooting. Sometimes they were
shooting before having ordered. Once they shooted to our fishing nets and
tried to damaged it sailing directly on them.
"Unfortunately our big mistake was not having with us neither cameras nor
video cameras that, together with megaphones to be used exactly like they
do, I consider essential for our next fishing missions.
"Despite these intimidations the fishing was rich and profitable, we
brought ashore quantity of fish ten times bigger than the usual
Palestinians fishers standard."
1 September 2008
Vittorio Arrigoni, Free Gaza Movement
http://www.FreeGaza.org
-----
Erez Crossing, by Donna Wallach:
"I along with others from Free Gaza Movement decided not to return with
the SS Free Gaza and SS Liberty to Cyprus and instead to remain in Gaza
Strip for a while to continue the work of breaking the siege. Throughout
the time I am staying here I will participate with the others in various
actions in Rafah, Gaza City, and other areas throughouth the Gaza Strip,
including going out in fishing boats to challenge the Israeli Navy
preventing the Palestinian fishermen from fishing more than 6 miles out.
In addition, we are re-organizing ISM Rafah, to do Palestinian led
solidarity work here.
"This past Friday a 64 year-old Palestinian woman from Beit Hanoun, Gaza
Strip arrived to the Erez crossing accompanied by all of the remaining
members of the Free Gaza Movement. She has been suffering for seven months
with a tumor on her spine. Without the necessary surgery granted her by
St. Joseph Hospital in Jerusalem, she will become paralyzed and will live
in contant pain, from what I understand. We, FGM members, walked in front
of her as a protection for her to not be shot by the Israeli soldiers
guarding their border. She was being pushed in a wheelchair. Slowly we
approached the Israeli side, holding our arms in the air and many of us
clutching our passports.
"A Palestinian man was the liason between Dr. Mona El-Farra and the
Israeli "authorities". Dr. Mona El-Farra was the main organizer for this
action of bringing this 64 year-old woman to cross the Erez checkpoint.
The Palestinian man kept on telling us that we needed to stop because the
Israelis told him they were going to shoot us. We decided it was more
important to challenge the Crime Against Humanity of Israel not permitting
this woman to receive the urgent medical treatment she needed, so we
continued to walk towards the Israeli gate with our arms up in the air. We
finally reached the Israeli gate without a shot being fired, not a bullet
not a tear gas cannister or a sound bomb. In the end though, the Israelis
heartlessly told the woman she had to go back home, but could return an
8th time.
"On Sunday 31st August, we from FGM arrived at about 9:00am from Rafah,
the southernmost area in Gaza Strip, to Erez crossing, the northernmost
area in Gaza Strip. We came to continue standing in solidarity with the
woman from the village of Beit Hanoun. We arrived late and she and Dr.
Mona El-Farra had already left for the border. We gathered inside the
crude fenced in area where all Palestinians and others wait for permission
to cross the dirt pathway to arrive to the Israeli gate. We waited hours,
then we heard that the woman was turned back again, with ridiculous excuse
that a member of her family must accompany her into Israel to the
hospital. This woman came back, yet was not defeated. Almost all the
members of her family have been wrongfully blacklisted by Israel, meaning
that they cannot enter the Apartheid State of Israel. Finally the woman's
75 year-old husband was granted permission to enter Israel with her. After
he arrived to Erez and the paper work for him was filled out, they went
off to the Israeli side. We continued to wait in the heat to hear that she
had crossed and was inside the Israeli ambulance that would take her to
the hospital and to her surgery which was supposed to have started on
Sunday. Dr. Mona El-Farra told us that she continued to tell the Israeli
authorities that members of the Free Gaza Movement were waiting at Erez to
ensure that the woman would enter this time and that we were willing to
die, we would walk again to the border even if the soldiers would shoot
and kill us, we would do what it takes so that the Israelis would allow
her to enter, which they finally did. The 8th time was the charm for this
very brave and courageous woman sitting in a wheelchair who defied the
Israelis with all of their gunpower."
31 August 2008
Donna Wallach, Free Gaza Movement
http://www.FreeGaza.org
For more information:
http://www.FreeGaza.org
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