Category: Features

Free Gaza Boat “Spirit of Humanity” departs Cyprus

Free Gaza Movement

UPDATE, June 30 03:03: We just spoke again with our people aboard the Spirit of Humanity. The Israeli Navy is continuing to try and intimidate the ship, and is actively jamming its radar, GPS, and navigation systems in direct violation of international maritime law. This jamming is extremely dangerous and directly threatens the welfare and safety of everyone aboard our civilian ship.

Because their instrumentation is being jammed, they are using compass & paper to attempt to navigate. They are in international waters & they believe their location is approximately 110km off of the town of Hadera. Everyone is tired but determined. They are not being deterred by the Israeli aggression & are continuing toward Gaza.

Full updates at freegaza.org

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The Free Gaza boat the “Spirit of Humanity” departed Cyprus at 7:30am on Monday, 29 July. Twenty-one human rights and solidarity workers representing eleven different countries were aboard. The passengers include Nobel laureate Mairead Maguire and former U.S. congresswoman Cynthia McKinney. The ship also carries three tons of medical aid, children’s toys, and rehabilitation and reconstruction kits for twenty family homes.

Over 2,400 homes were destroyed in Gaza during the Israeli massacre in December/January, 490 of them by F-16 airstrikes, as well as 30 mosques, 29 educational institutions, 29 medical centers, 10 charitable organizations, and 5 cement factories.

Each kit carries a small amount of supplies for a single family, representing sectors of civil society currently being blockaded by Israel: Agriculture, Building & Reconstruction, Education, Electricity, Health, and Water & Sanitation. Although over 4 billion dollars in aid was promised to Gaza in the aftermath of the Israeli onslaught, little humanitarian aid and no reconstruction supplies have been allowed in.

See photos of the ship leaving Larnaca on flickr.

[The Palestinians of Gaza] must know that we have not and will not forget them.
– Mairead Maguire, co-winner of the 1977 Nobel Peace prize for her work in Northern Ireland

[T]he U.S. should send a message to Israel reiterating the reported White House position that the blockade of Gaza should be eased, and that medical supplies and building materials, including cement, should be allowed in … Will [President Obama] stand by his own words and allow us to provide relief for Gaza or will he back down?
– Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney

“Israel’s closure policy is a blatant violation of international law. We call upon our governments to take action to uphold their obligations under the Fourth Geneva Conventions. Until they do, we will act.
– Huwaida Arraf, Chairperson of the Free Gaza Movement

Passengers aboard the Spirit of Humanity include:

  • Khalad Abdelkader, Bahrain
    Khalad is an engineer representing the Islamic Charitable Association of Bahrain.
  • Othman Abufalah, Jordan
    Othman is a world-renowned journalist with al-Jazeera TV.
  • Khaled Al-Shenoo, Bahrain
    Khaled is a lecturer with the University of Bahrain.
  • Mansour Al-Abi, Yemen
    Mansour is a cameraman with Al-Jazeera TV.
  • Fatima Al-Attawi, Bahrain
    Fatima is a relief worker and community activist from Bahrain.
  • Juhaina Alqaed, Bahrain
    Juhaina is a journalist & human rights activist.
  • Huwaida Arraf, US
    Huwaida is the Chair of the Free Gaza Movement and delegation co-coordinator for this voyage.
  • Ishmahil Blagrove, UK
    Ishmahil is a Jamaican-born journalist, documentary film maker and founder of the Rice & Peas film production company. His documentaries focus on international struggles for social justice.
  • Kaltham Ghloom, Bahrain
    Kaltham is a community activist.
  • Derek Graham, Ireland
    Derek Graham is an electrician, Free Gaza organizer, and first mate aboard the Spirit of Humanity.
  • Alex Harrison, UK
    Alex is a solidarity worker from Britain. She is traveling to Gaza to do long-term human rights monitoring.
  • Denis Healey, UK
    Denis is Captain of the Spirit of Humanity. This will be his fifth voyage to Gaza.
  • Fathi Jaouadi, UK/Tunisia
    Fathi is a British journalist, Free Gaza organizer, and delegation co-coordinator for this voyage.
  • Mairead Maguire, Ireland
    Mairead is a Nobel laureate and renowned peace activist.
  • Lubna Masarwa, Palestine/Israel
    Lubna is a Palestinian human rights activist and Free Gaza organizer.
  • Theresa McDermott, Scotland
    Theresa is a solidarity worker from Scotland. She is traveling to Gaza to do long-term human rights monitoring.
  • Cynthia McKinney, US
    Cynthia McKinney is an outspoken advocate for human rights and social justice issues, as well as a former U.S. congressperson and presidential candidate.
  • Adnan Mormesh, UK
    Adnan is a solidarity worker from Britain. He is traveling to Gaza to do long-term human rights monitoring.
  • Adam Qvist, Denmark
    Adam is a solidarity worker from Denmark. He is traveling to Gaza to do human rights monitoring.
  • Adam Shapiro, US
    Adam is an American documentary film maker and human rights activist.
  • Kathy Sheetz, US
    Kathy is a nurse and film maker, traveling to Gaza to do human rights monitoring.

Israeli forces arrest Israeli and international activists in Safa

For Immediate Release

27 June 2009: Israeli forces arrest 24 solidarity activists and 2 hired Palestinian Israeli drivers in the West Bank village of Saffa.

At 7.30am, 35 Israeli and 10 international solidarity activists joined 3 Palestinian families from Beit Ummar to harvest their land. As the group tried to go down to their lands, 50 soldiers and border policemen stopped them.

Before reaching the land, Israeli forces arrested 10 Israeli and international activists, under the premise that Saffa was under a Closed Military Zone*. The army was aggressive towards the group and used violence against them.

After pushing the group, border policemen arrested another 9 activists.

Yousef Abu Maria from the Palestine Solidarity Project, had his leg broken from the use of excessive force. Israeli soldiers tried to arrest him, but the solidarity activists negotiated for the soldiers to release him and allow him to be taken by an ambulance from the Palestinian Red Crescent. He is currently being treated at a Hebron hospital.

A female Israeli activist from Tayyoush was also injured and is currently at an Israeli hospital seeking treatment for a potentially broken hand.

As 2 cars with hired drivers were leaving the area with other activists, Israeli forces stopped them and arrested 5 more activists and the 2 Palestinian Israeli drivers.

The arrested were taken to the Israeli prison in the illegal settlement of Gush Etzion.

The activists are members from Palestine Solidarity Project, Tayyoush, Anarchists Against the Wall, and the International Solidarity Movement. They have been accompanying Palestinian farmers to document and deter violence from Israeli forces as the farmers harvest their land.

Last Saturday, 8 Israeli activists were arrested as they accompanied Palestinian farmers.

*Israeli forces have declared the area in Saffa a Closed Military Zone (CMZ), in direct violation of an Israeli Supreme Court decision. The Israeli Supreme Court determined that Closed Military Zones cannot be issued on Palestinian agricultural land, cutting off Palestinian farmers, or prolonged periods of time. However, Israeli forces have been regularly declaring a Closed Military Zone on farm land in Saffa since 2 April 2009.

UPDATE: 1pm, 27 June 2009, All the activists and drivers have been released.

Bil’in village holds press conference and demonstration against construction of the Apartheid Wall

For Immediate Release:

Friday, 26 June 2009: Bil’in village holds press conference and a demonstration against construction of the Apartheid Wall.

Palestinian residents, alongside international and Israeli activists gathered today in Bil’in to demonstrate against the Wall.

Before the demonstration, Naomi Klein, Basel Mansour, and Attorney Wisam Ahmad held a press conference.

Naomi Klein is visiting Palestine on the occasion of the publication of her latest book, the #1 international bestseller, “The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism” in Arabic and Hebrew. Klein is an advocate for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign and spoke about her choice to respect the 2005 call for BDS from Palestinian civil society. She explained that the international community can actively support the Palestinian people in their non-violent resistance to the Occupation through BDS.

Explaining her role as a writer, Klein said, “We believe that art and culture are political… Bil’in has integrated art and culture into their resistance. ”

Basel Mansour; a member of Bil’in’s Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements spoke about Bil’in’s ongoing campaign to demonstrate against the theft of it’s land.

“We will continue our non-violent resistance to the confiscation of Bil’in’s land and incorporate using the legal system as a means of attaining justice. We hope that the Canadian court will decide to hear our case and hold Green Park International and Green Mount International accountable for their violation of international law.” – Basel Mansour

Attorney Wisam Ahmad; a program officer for Al Haq and speaker on behalf of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee (BNC) will talk about Bil’in and the village’s current suit against two Canadian companies.

“The privatization of the settlement industry is an attempt for the Israeli government to hide behind the actions of companies such as Green Park International and Green Mount International. These companies and the Israeli government must be held accountable for violating the Geneva Conventions and Rome Statue.”

After the press conference, Palestinian, Israeli and international demonstrators marched from the village towards the site of the Wall. Chanting slogans against occupation, protesters arrived near the Wall. Israeli forces shot tear-gas at demonstrators, including the use of the cannon (which shoots off many gas canisters at once). Several suffered from heavy tear-gas inhalation and required medical attention from medical personnel.

Bil’in’s Court Case

Bil’in has charged that Green Park International and Green Mount International are illegally constructing residential buildings and other settlement infrastructure on village territory.

The Canadian court will first decide if it has jurisdiction to hear Bil’in’s case.

According to Emily Schaeffer, an Israeli attorney representing the village of Bil’in, both the articles of the Fourth Geneva Convention and the Rome Statute have been incorporated into Canadian federal law under the 2000 Canadian Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Statute, giving Canadian courts jurisdiction to hear Bil’in’s case.

Green Park International and Green Mount International have motioned to dismiss the suit. They claim that Canada is not the appropriate forum in which to try the case.

Bil’in plaintiffs are asking for three things in the lawsuit: a declaration that the companies’ construction is illegal under Canadian and international law; the demolition of the buildings and restoration of the land, and $2 million in punitive damages from the companies.

Bil’in is located 4 kilometers east of the Green Line and is adjacent to Modiin Illit, a large settlement bloc that sits on territory confiscated from Bil’in and several neighboring Palestinian villages. Since 2005, residents of this agricultural community have been organizing a nonviolent campaign against the construction of Israel’s Wall in the West Bank on village land.

‘Free Gaza’ boats stopped in Cyprus

The Jerusalem Post

25 June 2009

Cyprus’ Merchant Shipping Department on Thursday prevented international activists from sailing to the Gaza Strip to deliver humanitarian aid in defiance of Israel’s blockade of the Palestinian territory.

Department chief Sergios Sergiou said that a fishing boat and a small ferry that the Free Gaza Group were to use for the trip from Cyprus to Gaza had not undergone safety inspections which would take “at least a few days” to complete.

“It’s a dangerous trip,” Sergiou told the Associated Press. “The vessels must undergo a general inspection before they are allowed to go.”

But Free Gaza Group spokesman Ramzi Kysia said that both vessels were allowed to sail from Cyprus during the group’s previous attempts to reach Gaza.

The Free Gaza Group has already made five successful boat trips from Cyprus to Gaza since August 2008. Kysia said the fishing boat sailed to the Palestinian territory in August last year. The ferry set sail in January this year during Israel’s three-week war in Gaza, but had to turn back a few hours into the trip after encountering mechanical problems.

Sergiou could not explain why the vessels were previously allowed to leave Cyprus.

Free Gaza spokeswoman Greta Berlin said she was “absolutely outraged”, but that activists would not be deterred.

Around 32 people including a former US congresswoman and an Irish Nobel laureate were to sail to Gaza to deliver 3 tons of medical supplies and 15 tons of cement.

“We promised the people of Gaza we would come back and that we would not forget them,” said Mairead Corrigan Maguire, who won the 1976 Nobel Peace Prize for her work with Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland.

Free Gaza Movement boats plan to sail for to Gaza

25 June 2009

The Free Gaza Movement will depart from Larnaca Port for the Gaza Strip at 10am today, Thursday 25 June. We are sending two ships, the Free Gaza and the Spirit of Humanity, with 3 tons of medical supplies, 15 tons of cement, suitcases full of toys, crayons and coloring books for children, as well as human rights workers and journalists from 14 countries, including Nobel laureate Mairead Maguire and former U.S. Congresswoman and presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney. This will be our first attempt to challenge Israel’s naval blockade on Gaza by sea since the Israeli Navy brutally rammed our boat, DIGNITY, in December, and nearly sank the SPIRIT OF HUMANITY with all on board in January.

We shall hold a press conference at Larnaca Port between 9-10 am, prior to departure.

The Free Gaza Movement will sail 240 miles from Cyprus to Gaza, its eighth mission to break Israel’s draconian siege on 1.5 million Palestinians. Two of the organizers, Huwaida Arraf and Greta Berlin, as well as the Honorable Cynthia McKinney, former U.S. Congresswoman from Georgia, held a press conference this week in Doha, Qatar, calling on the world to recognize the Palestinians’ human and civil rights, rights that have been denied for 61 years. (See link below for YouTube/Al Jazeera press conference coverage.)

“People in Gaza are being made to live in subhuman conditions. Children are dying, and governments are silent. It is important to continue sending boats to Gaza to challenge the criminal blockade enforced by the Israeli military,” said Ms. Arraf. The group emphasized that what they are taking is only a token of what the people of Gaza need. They are hoping to buy a cargo boat, to bring in larger amounts of building supplies via the sea route they aim to open. They ask for the financial support of people around the world to purchase this ship.

Speaking to Al Jazeera and eight other news organizations, Ms Arraf emphasized, “International donors pledged over $4bn to rebuild Gaza, yet none of them are doing a thing about the fact that Israel allows no building supplies into the territory. So 36 of us from 16 countries are leaving on Thursday to tell the world to do something.”

When asked what guarantees the group has received from the Israeli government, both Berlin and Arraf frowned. “We do not seek permission from or coordinate with the Israeli authorities. Israel has grossly abused its authority as an occupying power, daily violating the human rights of Palestinians, and imposing collective punishment on them. It is past time for the international community to stop abetting Israel’s illegal closure policy.” stated Ms. Arraf. The group intends to go at least three times over the summer, June 25th, July 14th and August 16th, near the anniversary of the first successful voyage.

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The Free Gaza Movement, a human rights group, sent two boats to Gaza in August 2008. These were the first international boats to land in the port in 41 years. Since August, four more voyages have been successful, taking Parliamentarians, human rights workers, and other dignitaries to witness the effects of Israel’s draconian policies on the civilians of Gaza. On December 30, their boat, the DIGNITY, was rammed three times while 90 nautical miles out, in international waters, on its way to deliver emergency medical supplies to the people of Gaza, while under the infamous attack by Israel.

Contact the Free Gaza Movement at www.freegaza.org

PASSENGER LIST (individual details available at the website)

Kathy Sheetz (US)
Alex Hamilton (UK)
John Klusmire (US)
Ishmahil Blagrove (Jamaica, UK)
Peter Eyre (UK)
Ahmed Masood (Palestine)
Iason Athanasiadis (Greece)
Davide Pecorelli (Italy)
Adam Shapiro (US)
Cynthia McKinney (US)
Derek and Jenny Graham (Ireland)
Lubna Marsawa (Palestine, Israel)
Mairead Maguire (Ireland)
Denis Healey (UK, Cyprus)
Fathi Jaouadi (Tunisia, UK)
Theresa McDermott (Scotland)
Huwaida Arraf (Palestine, Israel, US)
Adam Qvist (Denmark)
Mary Hughes Thompson (Canada)
David Schermerhorn (US)
Waltraud Schauer (Austria)

Doha Press Conference on June 22nd: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWI-5KOBo3o