Gaza Humanitarian Ships Leave Cyprus, attacked by Israeli Commandos

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The flotilla has been beset by delays and difficulties A flotilla of ships sailing towards Gaza with aid and activists on board has left Cyprus and will reach its destination on Monday, organisers say.
But Israel says it will stop the boats, calling the campaign a "provocation intended to delegitimise Israel".

The Palestinian territory has been under an Israeli and Egyptian economic blockade for almost three years, with only limited humanitarian aid allowed.

The activists, from the Free Gaza Movement, want to break the blockade.

Israel imposed the measures after the Islamist movement Hamas took power in Gaza.
Hamas has fired thousands of rockets into Israel over the past decade.

'Medieval siege' For days, human rights activists aboard the flotilla of ships have been saying they are due in Gaza soon, but they are now running days late.

Organisers confirmed that they had left Cyprus on Sunday afternoon, after confusion over their exact plans.

Greta Berlin, of the Free Gaza Movement, told the BBC that the campaign was "extremely well organised".

She told the BBC: "A lot of that confusion is done on purpose because why should we telegraph to the Israeli navy... exactly when it is that we are going to come?"

She said the activists would try to negotiate their entry into Gaza's waters, amid reports that the Israeli navy intends to tow the ships to the nearby city of Ashdod and deport all of those on board.

Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said the activists were "masquerading as human rights activists" while trying to make a political point.

He said both Israel and Egypt had offered to take the aid into Gaza, but that the activists had shown no interest.

"It appears they're putting their radical politics above the well-being of the people of Gaza," he said.
The BBC's Jon Donnison in Gaza City says there is much political spin being put on the story by both sides.

Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniya says any Israeli action to stop the ships will be an act of "piracy".
Israeli government press officers have been briefing journalists that the aid flotilla is not necessary. Israel says it allows 15,000 tons of aid into Gaza every week.

But the United Nations, which calls the blockade a "Medieval siege", says this is only a fraction of what is needed and less than a quarter of what was coming into Gaza before the blockade was enforced.


BBC News - Gaza aid flotilla 'leaves Cyprus'
 



By TIA GOLDENBERG, Associated Press Writer

HAIFA, Israel – Israeli warships attacked at least one of the six ships carrying pro-Palestinian activists and aid for blockaded Gaza, killing at least two and wounding an unknown number of people on board, an Arabic satellite service and a Turkish TV network reported early Monday.

The Israeli military refused to comment on the report.

The al-Jazeera satellite channel reported by telephone from the Turkish ship leading the flotilla that Israeli navy forces fired at the ship and boarded it, wounding the captain. The Turkish NTV network also reported an Israeli takeover with gunfire, and at least two people were killed.

The al-Jazeera broadcast ended with a voice shouting in Hebrew, "Everybody shut up!"

The reports came just after daybreak, with the flotilla still well away from the Gaza shore. Israel had declared it would not allow the ships to reach Gaza.

The head of the Gaza Hamas government, Ismail Haniyeh, condemned the "brutal" Israeli attack.

"We call on the Secretary-General of the U.N., 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," Haniyeh told The Associated Press.

On Sunday, Huwaida Arraf, one of the organizers, said the six-ship flotilla began the journey from international waters off the coast of Cyprus on Sunday afternoon after two days of delays. She said they expected to reach Gaza, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) away, on Monday afternoon, and that two more ships would follow in "a second wave."

The flotilla was "fully prepared for the different scenarios" that might arise, and organizers were hopeful that Israeli authorities would "do what's right" and not stop the convoy, she said.

"We fully intend to go to Gaza regardless of any intimidation or threats of violence against us," she said. "They are going to have to forcefully stop us."

After nightfall Sunday, three Israeli navy missile boats left their base in Haifa, steaming out to sea to confront the activists' ships.

Two hours later, Israel Radio broadcast a recording of one of the missile boats warning the flotilla not to approach Gaza.

"If you ignore this order and enter the blockaded area, the Israeli navy will be forced to take all the necessary measures in order to enforce this blockade," the radio message continued.

The al-Jazeera satellite channel reported that the ships changed course to try to avoid a nighttime confrontation, preferring a daylight showdown for better publicity.

The flotilla, which includes three cargo ships and three passenger ships, is trying to draw attention to Israel's three-year blockade of the Gaza Strip. The boats are carrying items that Israel bars from reaching Gaza, like cement and other building materials. The activists said they also were carrying hundreds of electric-powered wheelchairs, prefabricated homes and water purifiers.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said that after a security check, permitted humanitarian aid confiscated from the boats will be transferred to Gaza through authorized channels. However, Israel would not transfer items it has banned from Gaza under its blockade rules. Palmor said that for example, cement would be allowed only if it is tied to a specific project.

This is the ninth time that the Free Gaza movement has tried to ship in humanitarian aid to Gaza since August 2008.

Israel has let ships through five times, but has blocked them from entering Gaza waters since a three-week military offensive against Gaza's Hamas rulers in January 2009. The flotilla bound for Gaza is the largest to date.

Some 700 pro-Palestinian activists are on the boats, including 1976 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire of Northern Ireland, European legislators and an elderly Holocaust survivor.

The mission has experienced repeated delays, both due to mechanical problems and a decision by Cyprus to bar any boat from sailing from its shore to Gaza. The ban forced a group of European lawmakers to depart from the breakaway Turkish Cypriot northern part of the island late Saturday.

Israel and Egypt imposed the blockade on Gaza after Hamas militants violently seized control of the seaside territory in June 2007.

Israel says the measures are needed to prevent Hamas, which has fired thousands of rockets at Israel, from building up its arsenal. But U.N. officials and international aid groups say the blockade has been counterproductive, failing to weaken the Islamic militant group while devastating the local economy.

In particular, the ban on building materials has prevented Gazans from repairing thousands of homes that were damaged or destroyed in an Israeli military offensive, meant to stop Hamas rocket attacks, early last year.

Israel rejects claims of a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, saying it allows more than enough food and medicine into the territory. The Israelis also point to the bustling smuggling industry along Gaza's southern border with Egypt, which has managed to bring consumer goods, gasoline and livestock into the seaside strip.

Israel has condemned the flotilla as a provocation and vowed to block it from reaching Gaza.

Palmor said foreigners on the ships would be "sent back to their countries." Activists who did not willingly agree to be deported would be detained. A special detention facility has been set up in the southern Israeli city of Ashdod.

At Gaza's tiny port, meant for small fishing boats, Hamas officials, activists and foreign nationals prepared to welcome the flotilla, sitting in some 40 small boats that were bobbing in the sea and decorated with the flags of the countries of the pro-Palestinian activists, including Turkey and Algeria.

In other boats, Gaza boy scouts played music, while on shore, other activists released balloons with the faces of Palestinian civilians and militants killed in battles with Israeli forces.

In Syria, eight Damascus-based Palestinian groups urged Arab and Muslim states to work to support the flotilla and warned Israel against committing any "foolishness to impede the vessels"

"This could create more tension and trigger unpredictable reactions," said the groups, which included Hamas and the militant Islamic Jihad.

Reports: Israeli ships attack aid flotilla, 2 dead - Yahoo! News
 
hawa Hamas na ndugu zao wanapenda tu kuwachokonoa wana wa izrael;
 
doup said:
hawa Hamas na ndugu zao wanapenda tu kuwachokonoa wana wa izrael;
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Waliokufa mpaka sasa wamefikia 16.Hamas sio waliomo ndani ya hizo meli.Wale ni watu wenye huruma na binadamu wenzao kutoka mataifa mbali mbali duniani.Sio wenye fikra za kinyama kama za kwako na hao Wana wa Israel bandia.
 
lazima kuna sababu, hawawezi kufanya kitu hivihivi...watu wenyewe waliotoa iyo video ni wa Turkish ambao wanaconspire sana na wapalestina/waarabu. kama kuna sababu ya kufanyahivyo kwa upande wa israel, nasapoti pia. israel inayo haki ya kujilinda, kutengua mitego yote iliyotegwa dhidi yake ambayo inaweza kuja kuwadhuru baadaye. hao waarabu wanatumia sana hiyo mianya ya misaada kuingiza silaha kwaajili ya hamas...hasahasa sasahivi wanapoona kuwa israel ina mpango wa kuilipua iran, wanawapa silaha hamas na hezborah ili vita ikishaanza, israel wapate mashambulizi toka pande zote, kuanzia lebanon kwa hezboral, gaza kwa hamas na iran/syria pia....lakini hawawezi kitu, Mungu yu pamoja na Israel siku zote. usiwaamini sana waarabu, pia watu wasikilize pande zote mbili, upande wa waarabu na upande wa waisrael ndo watoe hukumu....Mungu ibariki Israel..
 
MASOUD M.SAID said:
Waliokufa mpaka sasa wamefikia 16.Hamas sio waliomo ndani ya hizo meli.Wale ni watu wenye huruma na binadamu wenzao kutoka mataifa mbali mbali duniani.Sio wenye fikra za kinyama kama za kwako na hao Wana wa Israel bandia.
Click to expand...

Haya matokeo waliyajua kabla maana Israel ilishatoa tahadhari kwamba wasilete hiyo misaada yao, wao wakajifanya kichwa ngumu! Sasa hapa wa kumlaumu ni nani? Hiyo "huruma" ndiyo iliyowaponza! Wema usizidi uwezo! Na hao unaodai Waisrael bandia una-refer kauli potofu ya marehemu Muhammad kwamba Wayahudi waligeuzwa kuwa nguruwe?
 
kwani maana ya blockade ni nini? si kwamba hautakiwi kufanya hivyo walivyokuwa wanafanya, sasa israel wangefanya nini zaidi ya kuwalipua? wa kuwalaumu ni hao wenye kiburi. hapo ndo unaona kiburi cha waarabu waziwazi...wanaichokoza tu israel ili wapate pa kuwashitaki.washindwe na walegee.
 

Sure, wajifanye wanapeleka misaada Darfur huku Al Bashir akiwa amewapiga stop! Ni kama mtu anayetegea mguu ili mtu amkanyage na akikanyagwa ndio anaanza ugomvi!
 
Hayo ni mambo ya kawa kwa wenzetu siumizi kichwa
 
Re: Reports: Israeli ships attack aid flotilla

ripoti inasema pamoja na mengineyo.
"The White House issued a cautious reaction, saying "The United States deeply regrets the loss of life and injuries sustained, and is currently working to understand the circumstances surrounding this tragedy."
JE TUSEME HUKO NDIKO KUTOEGEMEA UPANDE WOWOTE (IMPARTIALITY) WANAOUHUBIRI HAO WABABE WA DUNIA?
 

we ulitaka waegemee upande gani, wapalestina wana kiburi, wanajua kabisa kuna blockade wenyewe wameenda kwa kujitoa muhanga wakijua kabisa kitakachotokea, na walikuwa wanategemea reaction kama hiyo toka kwa israel ili wapate pa kusemea...kwanini walivunja blockade? israel walikuwa na haki kabisa ya kuwalipua tena wako ndani ya international humanitarian law/law of the war....kama wanaona kuna kosa, wapeleke issue kama ICC through nchi yoyote ya kiarabu au wamshinikize prosecutor afanye uchunguzi ili awafungulie kesi....ambayo watashindwa hata hivyo.
 

Israel walitaka kuwatisha hawa jamaa wasalimu amri, ila kwa kuwa walikuwa katika international waters, Israel haikuwa na sababu ya kuwavamia kuanza kupiga risasi za moto baada ya kuona wanapigwa marungu kama walivyosema wao. walitakiwa kukaa pwani kuendeleza hiyo blockade yao ili meli isitie nanga.

sasa everything went wrong ndiyo wanatafuta sababu za kuhalalisha unyama wao, yaani kama polisi wa kibongo wakiua raia mwema wanaanza sema ni jambazi. Kati ya waliouwawa hakuna Mpalestina hata mmoja wote ni wasamalia wema na wengine si waislamu. Unajua Mambo kama haya yanaifanya Islael kuwa katika wakati mgumu kidplomasia maana hata watetezi wao wanaona aibu kwa vitendo vya kinyama vinavyofanywa na hawa jamaa.
 

israel haitakuja kuwa katika wakati mgumu kidiplomasia hata siku moja, nchi kibao zinaigombania walau iwe na uhusiano nao hasa nchi za kikristo, na hazitakubali israel ifutwe kwenye ramani kama ilivyo maombi/swala za watu fulani.

hakukuwa na raia wasamaria wema kwenye meli hiyo, wote hao walikuwa na malengo ya kuwaprovoke wayahudi....utatiaje nanga kwenye ukanda wa gaza kama hawakuwa na lengo la kuihalifu blockade ya israel?, walikuwa wanafanya makusudi na walikuwa wanaviolate hiyo makusudi. kwanini muwasumbue israel kiasi hicho hadi kufikia hali kama hiyo....hata hivyo wamewahurumia....hapo mnatafuta ugomvi na israel kwa nguvu zenu zote.
 
Israel Attacks Gaza Relief Ships; Up To 20 Dead, The incident prompted a wave of international condemnations.

The United Nations Security Council called an emergency session for later on Monday following the killing of a number of mostly international activists aboard a six-ship convoy that tried to break Israel's blockade of Gaza.

Yes they did it again! For how long the Zionist regime will be above the international law?????
 
Israel Attacks Gaza Relief Ships; Up To 20 Dead, The incident prompted a wave of international condemnations.

The United Nations Security Council called an emergency session for later on Monday following the killing of a number of mostly international activists aboard a six-ship convoy that tried to break Israel's blockade of Gaza.

Yes they did it again! For how long the Zionist regime will be above the international law?????



MOD naomba uzidilete hizi hii artcle nyingine kama hii ipo sijaiona, kumradhi wakuu
 
gud job. waliyataka wenyewe hayo...waache kuisumbua israel, no one else to blame but themselves..
 
good job. waliyataka wenyewe hayo, ndo watakoma kuwachokoza israel wakiwa wametulia. wanatafuta vita na israel hao....ndo wajue maana ya blockade....
 
Ubungoubungo said:
gud job. waliyataka wenyewe hayo...waache kuisumbua israel, no one else to blame but themselves..
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Hawa ni international activits na hiyo ship ni kwa ajili ya aid ndio maana dunia nzima wanalaumu israel, wewe unamtazamu wa ajabu na chuki ambazo wakati mwingine si lazima. This is humanitarian aid boy!
 
Israel wanafanya vitendo vya kinya, Hawa activits wanapeleka misaada ya chakula kuwasaidia inocent people, haihusiani kabisa na Hamasa wala any sort of politics.

Under international law, Israel hana right ya ku block vyakula au misaada inayomsaidia mwana nchi wa kawaida, afterall Israel amevamia nchi ya palestina by any difinition

At this time dunia nzima inalaumu msireli, JF kuna vilaza wanajaribu ku justfy killing na kusherehekea vifo vya watu wasiohusika na upande wowote zaidi ya kuwasaidia wenyeshida, tujaribu kutumia vichwa vyetu badala ya kuendeshwa na chuki za kijinga.
 
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