Protest again tomorrow – no more complicity in Israel’s war crimes. No peace for the warmongers!
There’s still no word on who the wounded and martyred volunteers are, nor any contact with those who have been captured by the Israeli pirates.
Please keep up the pressure on representatives, ministers, the press etc. We must demand that Britain withdraws all military, economic and diplomatic support for Israel and withdraws its ambassador from Tel Aviv.
Write to Nick Clegg
Write to the foreign office
Full media and government contact directory
And demand that the media stop allowing itself to be an uncritical vehicle for Israeli propaganda while all those who could tell the true story of the attack are kept prisoner by the perpetrators. The BBC has been the worst offender by far when it comes to allowing Israel to set the parameters of the conversation. Other channels show footage shot on board the boats; the BBC shows only ‘information’ released by the Israeli spin machine!
We know the volunteers on board the ships were unarmed civilians, forced to defend themselves against attack by highly-trained, fully-armed, and notoriously trigger-happy commando fighters. How can they try to claim ‘self-defence’ when they launched an unprovoked, illegal assault on a legitimate aid ship in international waters? This is a clear cut case of piracy, and any defence that the boat’s passengers and crew mounted was heroic and entirely justified!
Let there be no peace for the warmongers until all our prisoners are released and the siege on Gaza is lifted!
Long live the martyrs of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla!
Lal salaam
Joti
Details of tomorrow’s protests (TUESDAY 1 JUNE) are below.
LONDON – 5.00pm outside Israeli Embassy, HIGH STREET KENSINGTON TUBE STATION, then TURN RIGHT and WALK UP … you will HEAR US!
BRADFORD – 4.00pm outside AL-HAMBRA
FRANCE – “à l’ensemble des initiatives unitaires de protestation : rassemblement parisien demain à proximité de l’ambassade d’Israël, à 18H30 au métro Franklin-Roosevelt, rassemblement à Marseille à 18H00 sur le Vieux-Port, rassemblement à Montpellier à 18H00 place de la Comédie, et dans d’autres villes de France”.
PLEASE FORWARD AND SHARE WITH OTHERS
Latest protest times: please get to one of these if you can – or organise one where you live
LONDON – 2.00pm @ DOWNING STREET
SHEFFIELD – NOW @ TOWN HALL
MANCHESTER – 5.00pm @ BBC on OXFORD STREET
GLASGOW – 5.00pm @ GEORGE SQUARE
YORK – 5.00pm @ ST SAMPSON SQUARE
EDINBURGH – 5.00pm @ FOOT OF THE MOUND
BELFAST – 4.00pm @ CITY HALL
DERRY – 5.00pm @ GUILDHALL
Please email this letter to William Hague at private.office@fco.gov.uk, and to Nick Clegg at cleggn@parliament.uk and libdemleader@parliament.uk.
Dear Mr Hague
Israeli naval forces this morning stormed a peaceful flotilla of boats delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza, and killed 20 of the unarmed civilians on board. Dozens more have been injured. Forty British nationals were on the flotilla. None of them have yet been accounted for.
Will the British government continue to maintain its complicit silence over the attack, or will it finally speak out and condemn Israel’s piracy and murder on international waters?
You had the opportunity to defend British citizens sailing with the flotilla, and demand safe passage for them and the vital aid they were carrying, but you chose not to do so.
You now have the opportunity to stand up for international law, and to lead the international community in condemning Israel’s actions and holding them to account.
I call on you to take this opportunity. You can begin by recalling Britain’s ambassador to Israel. Your political and moral obligations lie with those who seek to peacefully deliver aid, not with a country which repeatedly violates international law.
Yours sincerely
Via CPGB-ML
Early this morning, in international waters some 100 miles from Gaza’s coastline, Israeli commandoes forcibly boarded a peaceful convoy of aid ships that was headed to Gaza city.
Exact numbers are not yet known, but so far at least 16, possibly 20 volunteers aboard the main ship, the Mavi Marmara, are confirmed to have been murdered by Israeli forces, who were using live fire against the people on board. Dozens more have been wounded and all passengers have been abducted to an unknown location in Israel.
The 800 volunteers trying to deliver 10,000 tonnes of vital aid to Gaza are from 40 countries and include parliamentarians, journalists, women, children and the elderly. Forty members of the flotilla are British.
The flotilla’s cargo of essential supplies denied to Palestinians under the illegal blockade includes 2,100 tonnes of cement, 600 tonnes of iron bars and 150 tonnes of iron, all needed for reconstruction of houses and infrastructure that were destroyed by the brutal Israeli massacre of Dec 08-Jan 09, which left more than 1,417 Palestinians dead and 5,000 wounded, many of whom were maimed for life.
Also on board are 18 large and 80 small electricity generators, 50 large and 40 small prefab houses, 16 complete children’s playground kits, sports equipment including footballs and basketballs, $1m worth of medical equipment including a complete dental kit, construction and hardware supplies. The ships are carrying stationery supplies including crayons, pens and 20 tonnes of paper for schools,as well as textiles and food, including chocolate for Gaza’s children, currently banned by Israel.
The youngest passenger on the Mavi Marmara is a one-year-old baby; the eldest is a Palestinian leader in his 80s, who vividly remembers the 1948 Nakba (‘catastrophe’), when Israel massacred thousands of innocent Palestinian civilians and drove hundreds of thousands into exile. Sixty-two years later, despite a plethora of UN resolutions condemning Israel and demanding the right of return for these Palestinian refugees, they and their descendants still live in refugee camps.
The volunteers and peace activists of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla are unarmed. Their power lies not in weapons but in their determination to act where governments have refused. Standing in solidarity with their Palestinian brothers and sisters against Israel’s brutal, illegal occupation of Palestine and against the collective punishment of 1.7 million people (more than half of whom are children) living under siege, they have raised money in their communities to bring life-saving supplies to the besieged people of Gaza.
The volunteers on the flotilla represent the vast mass of humanity. They are upholding international law, which Israel, the US and Britain flout with impunity in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan (to name but three). And they are part of a growing international movement to show Israel that the world will not stand by and allow the siege to succeed and the Palestinians to be starved into submission.
It is significant that the Freedom Flotilla is supported by the Director of Operations for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA), John Ging, who says that Gaza deserves the same urgent international assistance that Haiti did.
Before the flotilla sailed, he said, “We believe that Israel will not intercept these vessels because the sea is open, and human rights organisations have been successful in similar previous operations proving that breaking the siege of Gaza is possible.” Although his optimism proved misplaced, such open encouragement by an influential figure within the UN itself makes it clear just how isolated Israel has become.
George Galloway, reacting to news of the assault this morning, described it as “one of the most dastardly attacks on humanitarian aid workers in recent times” going on to state that “amidst the wreckage of the Freedom Flotilla is what remains of Israel’s reputation as a member of the international community”.
Caoimhe Butterly, an activist with the Free Gaza movement on board the Rachel Corrie, stated in a video call for action: “It’s essential that it’s understood that this flotilla is legitimate, that we are attempting to uphold international law, that we have the conscience of the world on our side and that what we are doing is … the sort of actions that our governments should be and are not.
“In the direct silence and complicity of our governments, the people lead and the leaders follow …
“Through supporting this flotilla, you are supporting the daily resistance, endurance and steadfastness of the Palestinian people and their refusal to be broken. We’ve got to up the ante. We’ve got to understand that the urgency of the situation in Gaza demands our action, demands mobilisations, and we have to be willing to take some of the risks and sacrifices that our Palestinian brothers, sisters and comrades are forced to endure on a daily basis.
“It is an honour to be part of this struggle. It is an honour to join a people who continue to resist in conditions that would break most people. So please mobilise … and show your solidarity with the Palestinian people in struggle. It’s time to act.”
The CPGB-ML sends its heartfelt condolences to the families of those brave volunteers who have died and our sympathies those who have been wounded and their families. We share the anxiety of all those who have friends and family on board the ships whose current state and whereabouts is unknown.
We join all freedom and justice-loving peoples of the world in demanding the immediate release of the hundreds of unarmed volunteers taken prisoner by the Israeli pirates.
Let the sacrifice of our comrades not be in vain. They pledged to keep coming back until the sea was open and the siege on Gaza finally broken. Let us take up their pledge. Let there be no peace for any Israeli official – or for their funders and backers in Washington and London – while the volunteers remain prisoner or while the siege remains in place on Gaza.
And let us take heart from the fact that by this latest act of barbarism, Israel has knocked yet another nail into its own coffin and taken another giant stride down the road of self-destruction.
We send a red salute to all those activists who are playing their role in this struggle against imperialist domination of the Middle East. In the immortal words of Joe Hill: “Don’t mourn – organise!”
Long live the martyrs of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla!
Hound the warmongers!
Long live Palestine!
Please join the demonstration today, Monday 31 May, at 2.00pm outside Downing Street.
Or the vigil outside Belfast City Hall.
Or join or organise a demonstration in the country where you live.
Death toll from Gaza aid attack hits 20
The death toll from the Israeli navy’s takeover of a Gaza aid convoy has risen to 20 while Israel carefully censors reports on the casualties from the attack.
Gaza Freedom Flotilla came under fire early on Monday by Israeli navy forces in international waters more than 150km (90 miles) off the coast of Gaza.
The six-ship aid fleet was soon stormed by commandos descending from helicopters.
At least 20 people were killed in the takeover of the Gaza aid convoy, al-Aqsa TV station reported, saying that more than 50 people, including leader of the Palestinian Islamic Movement Sheikh Raed Salah, were wounded in the attack.
The news trickled through the Israeli military censorship which has sought to block the reporting of any information about the casualties.
A report on the radio said the censorship was aimed at covering up the number of casualties brought to Israeli hospitals for treatment.
Meanwhile, Israeli Trade and Industry Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer expressed regret for the deaths aboard the Gaza aid ships.
“The images are certainly not pleasant. I can only voice regret at all the fatalities,” he told Israel’s Army Radio.
The comments come as the first official acknowledgement by Tel Aviv that the attack had turned fatal.
Israel had initially declined to comment on the reports of casualties from the takeover of the aid ships.
Israeli forces have attacked a flotilla of aid-carrying ships aiming to break the country’s siege on Gaza.
More than 10 people were killed and dozens injured when troops stormed the Freedom Flotilla early on Monday, the Israeli military said.
The Israeli Army Radio said earlier that up to 16 people had been killed.
Footage from the flotilla’s lead vessel, the Mavi Marmara, showed armed Israeli soldiers boarding the ship and helicopters flying overhead.
Al Jazeera’s Jamal Elshayyal, on board the Mavi Marmara, said Israeli troops had used live ammunition during the operation.
The Israeli military said four soldiers had been wounded, one of them seriously, and claimed troops opened fire after “demonstrators onboard attacked the IDF Naval personnel with live fire and light weaponry including knives and clubs”.
Free Gaza Movement, the organisers of the flotilla, however, 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.
Israeli intervention
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.
Al Jazeera’s Ayman Mohyeldin, reporting from Jerusalem, said the Israeli action was surprising.
“All the images being shown from the activists on board those ships show clearly that they were civilians and peaceful in nature, with medical supplies on board. So it will surprise many in the international community to learn what could have possibly led to this type of confrontation,” he said.
Meanwhile, Israeli police have been put on a heightened state of alert across the country to prevent any civil disturbances.
Protests
Condemnation has been quick to pour in after the Israeli action.
Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, officially declared a three-day state of mourning over Monday’s deaths.
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.
“(The interception on the convoy) is unacceptable … Israel will have to endure the consequences of this behaviour,” the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement.
Ismail Haniya, the Hamas leader in Gaza, has also dubbed the Israeli action as “barbaric”.
Hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists, including a Nobel laureate and several European legislators, were with the flotilla, aiming to reach Gaza in defiance of an Israeli embargo.
But Israel had said it would not allow the flotilla to reach the Gaza Strip and vowed to stop the six ships from reaching the coastal Palestinian territory.
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.
George Galloway leads the first Viva Palestina aid convoy from London to Gaza, 14 Feburary 2009
“News has just broken of this barbarous act of piracy conducted by the so-called state of Israel, in which innocent humanitarian aid workers have been cold-bloodedly murdered and dozens wounded. Maybe more deaths to come in the hours that will follow.
“This crime is one of the most dastardly attacks on humanitarian aid workers in recent times, and amidst the wreckage of the Freedom Flotilla is what remains of Israel’s reputation as a member of the international community.
“Israel has grown used to killing people as an answer to their political problems, but now they have moved [on] from killing those Palestinians who have the misfortune to live under their occupation or behind the walls of their siege, and international citizens of 40 countries have come under a hail of gunfire from the so-called Israel Defence Force.
“This crime will not go unanswered. It will not go unanswered by the government of Turkey, which has invested heavily in the international diplomacy to try to come to the aid of the Palestinians under siege.
“But the international community as a whole must respond. Ambassadors should be recalled; Israeli ambassadors should be asked to leave; and a wholesale review of the international community’s relationship with this criminal, pirate state of Israel should now be launched …
“Viva Palestina Arabia was a partner in the flotilla, and we send our condolences to the families of the dead, our sympathies to the families of the wounded, our disappointment to the poor Palestinians under siege in Gaza, who will not now receive the $20m worth of charitable aid given from all over the world to try to make their lives just a little bit easier.
“This disaster cannot go unanswered. [It’s time] for the international community to stand up and be counted, and stop treating this law-breaking rogue state as if it were a respectable member of the United Nations.”
George Galloway speaking from Houston, Texas, at 5.18am (UK time).
Hassan Ghani, Press TV, says:
Israeli drones overhead, monitoring ship convoy. Israeli gov statements in Israeli media make it clear it cannot back down now – to do so would be major humiliation. Bulent Yildirim (IHH leader) tells Press TV convoy not willing to back down under any circumstances and will not allow Israelis to enter ships, although convoy has no weapons. Bloody confrontation likely.
The latest news from Hassan Ghani, Sarah Colborne and all the other national spokespeople on the main passenger ship is that the flotilla has got radar contact showing three Israeli warships approaching, with one visible to IHH boat eyes. There are drones flying overhead.
The flotilla is between 90 and 120 miles out at sea. That is far outside the 68 mile exclusion zone Israel has today (illegally) declared. The ships are clearly in international waters. The flotilla passengers all have life belts on, clearly anxious, but organised and determined.
You can watch the IHH deck live (stream keeps freezing, buffering and pausing for obvious reasons).
Activists in London have already spoken to the Foreign Office Emergency Response team, who are not in the position of doing anything pro-actively (they never are, it’s just not their job). They are acutely aware of the flotilla’s situation and ready to assist as appropriate any UK citizens abroad, or their direct relatives, “who need or request consular assistance”.
The people we have been asked to hammer away at are our elected representatives. Please email/phone/text government ministers – AND YOUR INDIVIDUAL CONSTITUENCY MP – to get them to support the convoy and tell the Israeli navy to bugger off.
1) PHONE – the BBC and SKY and ask them WHY there has been virtually no coverage of the Freedom Flotilla which has 40 British passengers and crew on board (in total across all the ships) and is being threatened by the Israeli navy with armed attack? Contact them on BBC 020 8624 9111 and SKY 020 7705 3000.
2) EMAIL – WILLIAM HAGUE
private.office@fco.gov.uk
AINAGCorrespondence@fco.gov.uk
haguew@parliment.uk
3) EMAIL or PHONE – NICK CLEGG
TELEPHONE Nick Clegg at the following numbers:
Sheffield Hallam constituency office – 0114 230 9002
House of Commons – 020 7219 2371
EMAIL ADDRESSES:
cleggn@parliament.uk, libdemleader@parliament.uk, nickclegg@sheffieldhallam.org.uk, leader@libdems.org.uk
Please do your utmost to raise support and lobby for safety for the flotilla.
There are moves to hold a DEMONSTRATION AT DOWNING STREET AT 2PM, TOMORROW MONDAY 31ST MAY whatever happens this evening.
As soon as I get more information about this you’ll know.
Joti's journey to Gaza 