Tag: Free Gaza Movement

Freedom Flotilla: We Will Not Be Intimidated

13 April, 2011 | Freedom Flotilla

Athens – The Freedom Flotilla 2 Steering Committee met in Athens 9 and 10 April to continue preparations for the upcoming flotilla. Since the last meeting in Amsterdam, Israel has launched an international campaign of incitement against the Flotilla and its coalition members who are participating from around the world.

The Greek Ship to Gaza hosted this international meeting and emphasized that the Greek government has failed until now to pressure Israel to release the two Greek boats hijacked from international waters and held in Israel since 31st May 2010. The Greek Ship to Gaza has complied with all of the roadblocks put into place by Israel in order to bring back its ships, but our efforts have been to no avail. The Greek government should have pressured Israel to release immediately the ships, as Israel did for the Turkish ships in August, 2010.

Now, on the eve of the second Freedom Flotilla 2 voyage, the Israeli government is threatening to attack us again. As occurred last year before the first Freedom Flotilla, Israeli leaders are busy developing an atmosphere of hostility that should leave no doubt as to their intentions if and when they illegally attack this civilian flotilla.

Therefore, we are calling on all our governments, the international community and the United Nations not to succumb to Israel’s intimidation. Governments need to fulfill their ‘responsibility to protect’ their own citizens. The threats against the Flotilla are not just at sea, but also in our home countries, as Israeli agencies are targeting individual groups and personalities. Flotilla partners insist that their governments take preemptive action to assure that Israel will not use force to interfere with this peaceful international effort to secure Palestinian human rights, human dignity and humanitarian assistance.

On May 10, Freedom Flotilla 2 partners will go to the European Parliament for meetings with MEPs as well as the United Nations and other international bodies, and to present Freedom Flotilla 2 and its goals. In addition to the partner organizations, there will also be participants from more than 50 countries on board the ships. This past week the European Jews for a Just Peace announced that they will join the Flotilla as a delegation and in sending humanitarian assistance to Gaza.

We are putting Israel on notice…
We are Coming
We are Unarmed
We are Civilian
You have no right to threaten us
We expect to reach Gaza without any Interference.

A call from Gazans to the world: “Keep trying to break the siege”

A press conference organised in anticipation of the Almathea aid ship

In a press conference at the port of Gaza city yesterday government officials, fishing associations, non-governmental organisations and civil society groups reiterated their support for the attempts by international activists to break the Israeli siege of Gaza by sea.

Yesterday (July 14th 2010) many people amassed at the Gazan port to urge on the latest attempt by activists to enter the strip, this time by a Libyan chartered aid ship. It was the first serious attempt to enter Gaza by sea since the horrifying attack by the Israeli navy on the Free Gaza Flotilla and the Mavi Marmara which saw 9 Turkish activists killed.

Mahfouz Kabariti, President of Palestine Sailing Federation and Palestinian Association for Fishing and Maritime Sports, was communicating with the Amalthea as it neared Gazan waters: “The last contact we had with them was at midnight and since then communication was cut by the Israeli navy. They told us the boat was surrounded by Israeli gunships, but that they were determined to attempt to dock in Gaza and not take the option offered by the Egyptian government to dock in El Arish.”

According to Mahfouz the roll of the Freedom Flotilla missions are two-fold: “First is the arrival with aid, and materials such as construction supplies still banned by the blockade. The second is to put a spotlight on the suffering of the people here. Even if they are attacked, the second message highlights even more the extent to which Israel will go to keep us in Gaza isolated from the rest of the world with this illegal blockade of our people.”

Amjad Shawa, Gaza Coordinator for Palestinian NGOs: "It is not enough to demand some kind of minor reduction of this illegal siege."

As well as government representatives and the Popular Committee to Break the Siege, Amjad Shawa, Gaza Coordinator for  Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations (PNGO) was present. He emphasised the importance of international civil society persisting in trying to break the siege.

The need is especially acute because so far Israel’s response has only been to reduce the blockade on Gaza by a tiny fraction. The European Union, the United Nations, countless human rights groups and the International Committee for the Red Cross have all expressed the need for a return to the free flow of goods and people in and out of the Gaza Strip. This must include construction materials which are sorely needed to help rebuild the 17,000 houses severely damaged in the 3 week attack over the New Year period of 2009 that left over 1500 dead including over 400 children.

“Nothing has changed here,” says Amjad. “Just some more consumer products…but 80% of the people here still depend on humanitarian aid. It is not enough to demand some kind of minor reduction of this illegal siege. But we are thankful that the siege on Gaza has not been forgotten, and that our people are still in the minds of the world. These kinds of solidarity actions are very important for Gazans, we see that others share with us the values of justice and the principals of human rights.”

A Gaza resident holding pictures of Saif al-Islam Gadhafi - whose charity sponsored the aid ship - and his father, Libyan leader Muammar Gadhaf

When asked about the role of the international community to pressure Israel, Amjad is more critical: “We are so sorry that the international community until now has made no real intervention, put no real pressure on Israel to lift the siege totally or exerted pressure on Israel to have a transparent and accountable international inquiry into the Israeli crimes on the freedom flotillas.

“Still today we’re waiting for real international pressure from the international community.  We hope that Israel will not use this silence as a chance to commit more crimes against the Palestinian people and international solidarity workers.”

The Libyan chartered boat was eventually forced to dock in El Arish, Egypt, after a wall of Israeli gunboats blocked its passage through to Gaza.  But the Palestinians remain heartened by these attempts and the further missions planned this September. Says Mahfouz: “People here feel grateful to those internationals who try to arrive at the Gaza beach, it’s so important to us that other people worry and support us.”

US to Gaza announces plan to join the next Freedom Flotilla

U.S. Boat to Gaza

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 14, 2010

This is an important moment in history. In the aftermath of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla massacre and increased world-wide scrutiny of Israel’s blockade of Gaza, the Israeli government has mounted a huge public relations campaign spreading the lie that by letting a few more items into Gaza the blockade has been lifted. This is not the reality. Gaza is still under siege, vital building materials and other supplies are banned, exports of goods from Gaza are denied and neither ships nor people can travel without permission from Israel, permission which Israel will not give. Gaza is essentially an open-air prison under a U.S.-backed Israeli blockade.

We are planning to launch a U.S. boat to Gaza, joining a flotilla of ships from Europe, Canada, India, South Africa and parts of the Middle East due to set sail in September/October of this year. In order to succeed in this essential but costly human rights project, we need significant financial support.

Citizens around the world have responded to the plight of the Palestinian people and are taking action to help break the blockade which is suffocating the lives of the people of Gaza and denying them their liberty. The U.S. government is complicit through established policies that uncritically support Israel in its brutal attack on the Palestinian people and on those who attempt to intervene on their behalf. We in the United States must continue to step up and do our part. We must join with others from across the world to support an end to the collective punishment of 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza.

We turn to you to help make the U.S. boat, The Audacity of Hope, a reality. We must raise at least $370,000 in the next month. These funds will be used to purchase a boat large enough for 40-60 people, secure a crew, and cover the licensing and registering of the boat. In addition, the funds will subsidize some other costs of sending a U.S. delegation. We can make this happen together. For example, with 370 people giving $1,000, or with 3,700 people giving $100, we will have raised our full amount.

We have already received donations ranging from $10 to $10,000. So, give what you can and give generously. From the deck of The Audacity of Hope, we will be in a powerful and unique position to challenge U.S. foreign policy and affirm the universal obligation to uphold human rights and international law. Let us act now because every moment counts and every dollar counts. Together we will contribute to the great effort to end the blockade of Gaza and the illegal occupation of Palestine.
Please spread this appeal letter far and wide, so that others will contribute as well.

Thank you for your generosity.

On behalf of the U.S. BOAT TO GAZA,
Nic Abramson, Middle East Crisis Response
Elliott Adams, Past President, Veterans For Peace
Laurie Arbeiter, Activist Response Team
Russell Banks, Writer
Medea Benjamin, Co-founder CODEPINK
Phyllis Bennis, Institute for Policy Studies
Naomi Brussel, Activist Response Team
Allan Buchman, Founder and Artistic Director, The Culture Project
Leslie Cagan, Co-Founder United for Peace and Justice
Henry Chalfant, Film Maker
Kathleen Chalfant, New York
Kevin Clark, Midwest coordinator for Free Gaza Movement
Ellen Davidson, Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions-USA
Noor Elashi, Writer
Basem Emara, Gaza Freedom March
Hedy Epstein, Palestine Solidarity Committee, St. Louis, Missouri
Mike Ferner, National President, Veterans For Peace
Felice Gelman, Gaza Freedom March
Jane Hirschmann, Jews Say No!
Jennifer Hobbs, New York City Attorney/Gaza Freedom March
Abdeen Jabara, Past President, American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Civil Rights Attorney
Tarak Kauff, Veterans for Peace
Kathy Kelly, Co-Coordinator, Voices for Creative Nonviolence
Eleanore Kennedy
Michael Kennedy
Rashid Khalidi, Edward Said Professor of Arab Studies, Department of History, Columbia University
Ramzi Kysia, Free Gaza Movement
Iara Lee, Cultures of Resistance/Freedom Flotilla Survivor
Helaine Meisler, Hudson Valley BDS
Gail Miller, Women of a Certain Age
Fatima Mohammadi, Attorney at Law/Freedom Flotilla Survivor
Donna Nevel, Jews Say No!
Michael Ratner, President, Center for Constitutional Rights
Mariam Said, New York
Najla Said, Actor/Writer
Hannah Schwarzschild, American Jews for a Just Peace
Kathy Sheetz, Free Gaza – USA/Freedom Flotilla Survivor
Ann Shirazi, Granny Peace Brigade
Eleanor Stein, Albany Law School
Michael Steven Smith, New York City Attorney/Author
Sarah Wellington, Activist Response Team
Ret. Col. Ann Wright, Freedom Flotilla Survivor
Dorothy M. Zellner, Veteran Civil Rights Activist

*Organizations listed for identification purposes only

Donations

Please make out tax deductible contributions of $150 or more to:
INSTITUTE FOR MEDIA ANALYSIS (Write Stand for Justice in the memo line.)
Institute for Media Analysis
143 West 4th Street #2F
New York, NY 10012
Attn: Stand for Justice

Please make out contributions under $150 to:
STAND FOR JUSTICE
Stand for Justice
PO Box 373
Bearsville, NY 12409

Donate online at http://www.ustogaza.org

Time to break the siege on Gaza: A survivor’s account of Mavi Marmara

International Solidarity Movement

7 June 2010

During the Israeli attack on the Mavi Maramara, deep in international waters, I was inside the body of the ship. We were unarmed civilians ranging in age from a one-year-old child to an 88-year-old priest. We were going to Gaza to break the siege that Israel has imposed on a million-and-a-half people for the last four years. We were carrying a cargo of humanitarian and construction aid as well as letters from Turkish children to the children of Gaza. We were full of hope. When the attack began at 4 AM on the 31/5/10, our ship was transformed into a military target. On the deck, at first there was heavy firing, and then the Israeli occupation’s commandos took control of the ship.

Minutes after the attack began at four in the morning; wounded and dead bodies where being brought inside from the deck. We were then held for several hours with four bodies and dozens of wounded, some in critical condition. Blood was pouring from the bodies of the dead and the injured. We wanted to help them, but we had no medical equipment to treat them. There was nothing we could do. One Turkish woman was crying and saying goodbye to the body of her dead husband, petting his face and reading the Koran over him. Another man had a bullet wound in his head and was dying.

From 5 AM on, we were begging the Israeli navy to provide medical assistance to the wounded and dying but received no response. We made the request in English and Hebrew through the loud speaker and also wrote a large paper that said, “SOS… people dying in need of immediate medical attention” in Hebrew and put it on the window in front of them. They ordered the people with the sign to get lost.

At around 7AM they ordered us to come to the exit door one by one. I requested in Hebrew that medics be allowed to stay with the wounded; a solider told me to shut my mouth. Later he called me “You, tell the wounded that if they want to stay alive, they should come out one by one.” We tried to bring the injured out one by one, but they could not walk and where falling down.
We were transferred to the upper deck. We were searched; our hands were tied, and we were forced to sit or kneel on the deck as a military helicopter hovered within meters above our heads. Heavily armed soldiers with guns and knives strapped to their arms and legs stood guard over us with dogs. They where standing around us with the blood of their victims on their boots joking and making lewd sexual suggestions to each other about the female prisoners. Then Israeli formal delegations came and strutted around the ship. We were held this way for hours. I was held here until 1:40 AM on the 1/6/2010/

As soon as the Israeli occupation forces learned that I was a Palestinian Israeli citizen, I was treated more harshly and isolated from the rest of the other imprisoned passengers. I was taken to a prison in Ashkelon where I was held in isolation and subjected to humiliations such as strip searches four times a day. The next day we were brought to court, and I was held in a small metal box inside the police car for 8 hours with my hands and legs shackled. We were accused with various accusations from attacking soldiers to carrying weapons. The judge gave the police permission to extend our detention for another 8 days. After international pressure forced the Israeli authorities to release all the foreign prisoners, all the Palestinians from 48 were taken to court again. This time, the judge ruled that we would go to house arrest and would be forbidden to leave the country for 45 days.
As an occupier and a colonizer, Israel depends on the principle of “divide and conquer” in order to maintain its control. It is especially threatened by people like the Palestinian delegation from 48 that sailed to Gaza on the Mavi Marmara, because we defy Israel’s attempt to divide us as Palestinians. By struggling with our sisters and brothers under the siege, we also send the message that we are one people and our struggle is one struggle. Israel is threatened by solidarity.
That Israel should murder civilians in international waters is not strange. It is a direct continuation of their policy of targeting civilians with lethal force and lethal policies such as the siege of Gaza, and Israeli policies of occupation and Apartheid.

Israel feels entitled to besiege, to kill and to attack civilians in international water. This comes from the silence of the world that makes them feel they have the right to do so.

This is the time to break the silence and to take action. To say “enough is enough” for Israel. Israel’s impunity must end. Israeli war criminals, such as the ones who committed piracy and murder on the Mavi Marmara and their superiors, must be held accountable for their crimes in international courts.

From house arrest in Kfor Qara, Palestine

Lubna Masarwa is an organizer for the Free Gaza Movement, and was the movement’s representative on the Mavi Marmara

Action Alert: Israeli forces sieze MV Rachel Corrie

The MV Rachel Corrie
The MV Rachel Corrie

Just before 9am GMT this morning, the Israeli military forcibly seized the Irish-owned humanitarian relief ship, the MV Rachel Corrie, from delivering over 1000 tons of medical and construction supplies to besieged Gaza. For the second time in less then a week, Israeli naval commandos stormed an unarmed aid ship, brutally taking its passengers hostage and towing the ship toward Ashdod port in Southern Israel.

Israeli forces stopped the other boats of the Freedom Flotilla on Monday, killing at least 9 activists while violently boarding the Turkish ship, Marvi Marmara. Since the murders, Israel has confiscated all videos aboard the ship and detained hundreds in its jails. Refusing an independent investigation into the attack, Israel continues the blockade of Gaza.

Witnesses refute Israel’s claims:
Democracy Now: Ambassador Peck’s account of the attack
Guardian: Gaza flotilla raid: ‘We heard gunfire – then our ship turned into lake of blood’
Archive of all Gaza Freedom Flotilla news

TAKE ACTION:

1. Organize an emergency protest to show Israel that its illegal blockade will not be tolerated

Register your demonstration or find a planned action in your area: http://gazafreedommarch.org/cms/en/flotilla/protest.aspx

2. Contact your representatives to demand that Israel be held accountable for violence against the Freedom Flotilla and end the siege on Gaza

International
Call your representative to Israel
http://www.embassiesabroad.com/embassies-in/Israel
United States
Call or send an email to your representatives
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/641/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=3973
White House: 1.202.456.1111
Department of State: 1.202.647.4000

3. Support the call from Palestinian civil society for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) for an intensification of the sanctions campaign to compel Israel to end to its aggression, http://www.bdsmovement.net/?q=node/710

Target local shops that sell Israeli products, http://www.bdsmovement.net/?q=node/4
Supermarkets, clothing stores and consumer goods from Israel can be the focus of a BDS campaign. Find a campaign in your area or launch one today!
Ongoing campaigns: http://bdsmovement.net/?q=node/54
Activist resources: http://bdsmovement.net/?q=node/49

Refuse to load/offload Israeli ships and airplanes,
Follow the historic example set by the South Africa, Norway and Sweden.