Israelis halt new bid to run Gaza blockade
Source: Agencies |
November 5, 2011, Saturday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
ISRAEL'S navy boarded two protest boats trying to break the Gaza Strip blockade yesterday and towed them to an Israeli port just north of the Palestinian territory, according to officials.
The military said forces boarded the boats after they ignored repeated calls to turn around. The boarding was peaceful and nobody was hurt, officials said.
It was the latest attempt by pro-Palestinian activists to draw attention to a five-year blockade of the impoverished coastal strip that critics say amounts to collective punishment of its residents.
Israel says its naval blockade is vital to prevent weapons from reaching violent groups such Hamas, the militant group that rules the Gaza Strip.
An Israeli police spokesman said the activists will be questioned by police and immigration officials and sent back to their home countries.
There were 27 activists from nine countries, including the US and Ireland, aboard the boats.
In Gaza, activist Amjad Shawwa called for the release of the activists, who he said "were on a civil trip to Gaza to help the Palestinians."
Shawwa said he had spoken with those on the boats about an hour before they were boarded, when they were surrounded by Israeli naval vessels. Their satellite phones stopped working shortly afterwards.
Israel sees the attempts to break the sea blockade as provocations and publicity stunts. It says the amount of aid in the small boats used by activists is insignificant, as Israel transfers aid to Gaza daily.
Israel's navy has intercepted similar protest ships in the past. Last year, Israeli troops killed nine Turkish pro-Palestinian activists when they resisted an Israeli operation to halt a similar flotilla.
The military said forces boarded the boats after they ignored repeated calls to turn around. The boarding was peaceful and nobody was hurt, officials said.
It was the latest attempt by pro-Palestinian activists to draw attention to a five-year blockade of the impoverished coastal strip that critics say amounts to collective punishment of its residents.
Israel says its naval blockade is vital to prevent weapons from reaching violent groups such Hamas, the militant group that rules the Gaza Strip.
An Israeli police spokesman said the activists will be questioned by police and immigration officials and sent back to their home countries.
There were 27 activists from nine countries, including the US and Ireland, aboard the boats.
In Gaza, activist Amjad Shawwa called for the release of the activists, who he said "were on a civil trip to Gaza to help the Palestinians."
Shawwa said he had spoken with those on the boats about an hour before they were boarded, when they were surrounded by Israeli naval vessels. Their satellite phones stopped working shortly afterwards.
Israel sees the attempts to break the sea blockade as provocations and publicity stunts. It says the amount of aid in the small boats used by activists is insignificant, as Israel transfers aid to Gaza daily.
Israel's navy has intercepted similar protest ships in the past. Last year, Israeli troops killed nine Turkish pro-Palestinian activists when they resisted an Israeli operation to halt a similar flotilla.
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