Tag: Gaza

FGM: Dignity arrives in Gaza

To view the Free Gaza Website click here

Larnaca: The DIGNITY pulled into Gaza at 9:15 a.m. Gaza time after an uneventful trip from Cyprus. The 23 passengers and crew on board were tired but ecstatic that they’d arrived. The 11 members of various European parliaments, originally denied entrance through the Rafah border, had made the crossing by sea, courtesy of the Free Gaza Movement’s blockade-busting boat, the third trip for this human rights organization.

“I am here to assess the humanitarian situation in Gaza, especially the medical situation. We have medicine and some medical equipment to deliver,” said Baroness Jenny Tonge, one of the parliamentarians. “What Israel does is outrageous when it breaks all international laws. No other country is able to get away with what Israel does.”

In addition to delivering medical equipment and supplies, the DIGNITY carried mail from friends and family around the world addressed to Gaza residents. This is the first time in years that mail has reached Palestine without passing through Israeli hands.

The brilliant Israeli journalist Amira Hass was also on board. Watching passengers disembark, we could see the joy in her face as she came back to Gaza, having been denied entrance for two years.

Just before arriving in the waters of Gaza, an Israeli naval gunboat approached, cutting across the bow of the boat, then falling back and tracking it for about an hour. Finally, the gunboat radioed the DIGNITY and asked who they were and where they were going. After Huwaida Arraf responded, the gunboat asked for the passenger list. “Our passengers are listed on our Free Gaza website for everyone to see,” replied Ms. Arraf, “You’re welcome to visit it any time. And… while you’re there, feel free to make a donation.” After a pause, then a laugh, the voice on the other end said, “Have a nice day” and left the DIGNITY to glide into the port of Gaza to cheering crowds and a packed agenda for the Parliamentarians.

Contact: Mary Hughes, Cyprus +357 96 75 00 59
Greta Berlin, Cyprus: +357 99 08 17 67
Huwaida Arraf, Gaza: +970 599 130 426
Angela Godfrey Goldstein, J”lem: +972 547 366 393

The passenger list (see below) and biographies are posted at www.freegaza.org. Those present at the press conference on Monday at 2.00 p.m. at Ramattan Studios in Gaza will include:

Lord Nazir Ahmed, (Pakistan/UK),
Christopher Andrews, (Ireland),
Huwaida Arraf, (US),
Eva Bartlett, (Canada),
Nikolas Bolos, (Ireland),
Sami Moheildin Mohamed Elhag (Sudan),
Derek Graham (Ireland),
Amira Hass (Israel)
Denis Healey, (UK),
Pauline McNeill (Scotland),
Fernando Morena (Spain),
Mohamed Nacer, (UK),
Hugh O’Donnell, (Scotland, UK),
Aengus ÓSnodaigh, (Ireland),
Fernando Rossi, (Italy),
David Schermerhorn, (USA),
Rob Sharp, (UK) (The Independent),
Clare Short, (UK),
Dr. Arafat Shoukri, (Palestine, UK),
Rhodri Glyn Thomas, (Wales, UK),
(Baroness) Dr. Jenny Tonge, (UK),
Sandra White, (Scotland, UK),
Josef Zisyadis, (Switzerland)

Maan: Third Free Gaza voyage successfully anchors in Gaza port

To view original article, published by Maan News Agency on the 8th November, click here

The third Free Gaza ship, the SS Dignity, anchored in the Gaza harbor on Saturday morning after setting sail from Cyprus Friday evening. Aboard were several European Parliamentarians from England, Italy and Switzerland as well as several Arab leaders, Human rights activists and Journalists.

This marks the fourth ship within three months to successfully arrive in Gaza. The voyages, organized by the Free Gaza movement, aim at breaking the Israeli siege on the area by opening the coastal border so Gazans can move freely in and out of the country.

The Gazan governmental committee for against the siege, which is affiliated with the de facto government, announced that a special agenda has been prepared for the solidarity delegation. They will give presentations and tours of some of the hardest hit areas in the Gaza Strip, particularly camps and hospitals.

The crew of the latest voyage brought with them one metric ton of medicines, most of which are varieties of basic pain killers and aspirin. These medications were said to be in desperately short supply, and mostly unavailable in local pharmacies.

Ynet: European politicians sail to Gaza

Third sailing protest sets off from Cyprus towards Strip with 11 politicians from UK, Switzerland, Italy in tow. ‘We want to challenge failure of our gov’ts to uphold Geneva convention,’ says British MP

To view original article, published by Ynet on the 7th November, click here

Eleven European politicians set sail to Gaza from Cyprus on Friday after saying attempts to get to the Palestinian territory via Egypt failed.

Members of parliament from Britain, Ireland, Switzerland and Italy left the Mediterranean island on a boat arranged by a pro-Palestinian group.

“We were going to witness the living conditions in Gaza. We were not allowed through the Rafah crossing so we are going by boat because it is the only way to get in,” said British MP Clare Short.

The parliamentarians said they expected to arrive in Gaza early on Saturday. It is the third time the US-based Free Gaza Movement has sailed from Cyprus to Gaza since August.

Israel has repeatedly announced that it would prohibit the group’s boats from arriving at their destination, but the two previous sails have been successful. Angela Godfrey-Goldstein of the Free Gaza Movement told Ynet that this was good news.

“We are very pleased, and I believe people in Gaza are pleased as well and hope that Gaza’s sea border remains open from now on.”

The sea-goers are taking a metric ton of medical supplies and three medical scanners used for spinal injuries, said Arafat Shoukri, 37, a doctor based in Britain.

“We are taking very basic medical supplies like paracetamol and painkillers. We were shocked when we got the list from the Health Ministry in Gaza, it means they don’t have anything,” Shoukri said.

Short, a former minister in Tony Blair’s government, said: “We want to witness the living conditions of these people, challenge the siege, and challenge the failure of our governments to uphold the Geneva convention. The whole of the EU is colluding to what is taking place in Gaza to our shame.”

Organizers of the boat shuttle said more activists would travel to Gaza in mid-December, and a boat of European musicians would travel there in January.

ISM Gaza Strip: Sowing lentils, reaping bullets, in Khouza’a, Gaza Strip

Khouza’a, Gaza Strip, Palestine, 6th November 2008:

By Donna Wallach

A number of Palestinian farmers went to their fields yesterday (6th November) to sow seeds for crops of wheat, lentils and rye to be harvested in the spring. Some internationals, volunteering with ISM Gaza, accompanied the farmers as they worked – the first time in five years for most, if not all of these, farmers.

The Palestinian farmers brought buckets filled with seeds, and the ISM volunteers walked with them up and down and across the land, sowing the seeds. Once the first plot of land had been sown a farmer with a tractor came and plowed the seeds into the land. Of course it wasn’t the way they would plant their crops if they could have the best circumstances. The land was full of weeds and thorns and not really prepared for sowing seeds – however, considering that the farmers are shot at whenever they go to their land, they need to plant their crops in the quickest way possible.

Soon after the farmers started sowing their seeds, two Israeli occupation force jeeps drove to the fence and across from the field that was being worked soldiers got out of the jeeps and lay down on the ground aiming their guns. The Palestinian farmers saw the jeeps and the soldiers and continued to work their land. After these farmers finished sowing seeds another farmer came with his tractor and started plowing the field. It wasn’t long before the Israeli occupation force soldiers started shooting. At first their shots were in the air, but very quickly the soldiers were shooting directly at the Palestinian farmers and at the ISM volunteers. The farmers quickly left the field. The ISM volunteers remained with their arms raised and yelled to the soldiers to stop shooting – bullets were landing within two to three feet where the volunteers were standing and some heard bullets
whistling past their ears.

Another larger jeep type vehicle arrived and at least 10 more Israeli occupation force soldiers got out. Four of them walked towards the border fence and positioned themselves close to it, clearly a sign that they knew there was no danger to them from the Palestinian side. The gunfire continued off and on and the ISM volunteers continued shouting to the soldiers “Stop! Stop shooting!”. The volunteers were also making phone calls to the ISM West Bank media office, journalists, their friends and their consulates. They were also receiving phone calls, one volunteer was called by friend who had heard on the radio that Palestinian farmers and ISM volunteers were being shot at in Khouza’a. Finally, after a few hours had passed, the soldiers got into the jeeps and they left. The ISM volunteers remained in the field for at least ten minutes and then took a short break.

During this entire time, since the morning, Israeli farmers had been farming their land, one was driving his tractor right up against the fence – it was crystal clear there was no danger to the Israeli occupation force soldiers or to the farmers. In fact, the Israeli farmers remained working their land the entire day, even while bullets were flying over the heads of the non-violent ISM activists.

During the first break from the onslaught of Israeli gunfire, other Palestinian farmers came to the field and started sowing seeds in another plot of land in the same field. A farmer brought his tractor and started plowing the seeds into the field. By this time Israeli occupation force soldiers returned in a jeep and again they shot at the Palestinian farmers and the accompanying ISM volunteers. The Palestinian farmers left the fields and the ISM volunteers remained. This time when there was calm, more farmers came to the field and started sowing their seeds in their plots of land and a second tractor came and was plowing. At around 1:40pm the Palestinian farmers had finished working this area of land – 15 dunams had been sown and plowed. All the farmers and ISM Gaza Strip volunteers left the fields satisfied of the work accomplished and the volunteers were invited back the following day to work 45 dunams of land in another field with other farmers. It was a good day of solidarity work.

FGM: “The people of Gaza have plenty of food. They don’t need to go fishing”

To view the Free Gaza Movement website click here

Larnaca. When members of the Free Gaza Movement sailed to Gaza in August, several accompanied fishermen aboard their small boats. Israeli gunboats regularly confine these boats inside a 6-mile Israeli-imposed limit. Although international law allows every Mediterranean sea territory fishing rights 12-20 miles offshore, Israel ignores those laws and has killed at least 14 fishermen over the past few years.

“All we ever wanted to do was fish,” said one as he fixed his nets. “We can’t feed our families or make money doing what our ancestors have done for thousands of years.”

Over the next two months, internationals reported and video taped several incidents of machine-gun fire and water-cannon attacks. Around 8:00 am, on October 31, ten internationals joined the fishermen as witnesses. By 8:30, the two lead boats had passed the Israeli limit. “The second boat was about 100 yards away from us when it was attacked for 30 minutes by a high-pressure water cannon from an Israeli warship. The spray was so powerful you couldn’t even see the boat,” said David Schermerhorn.

Throughout the day, as the men continued to fish, boats were hit so severely by high-pressure water cannon that only makeshift shutters and mattresses prevented the wheelhouses from flooding and windows from exploding onto the men. Within minutes, the Israeli water-cannon boat was joined by another gunboat, machine gun mounted in back. The gunner blasted multiple rounds within a meter of the fishing boat. Despite continued machine-gun fire, water cannons and three Israeli gunboats circling like sharks, the fishermen stayed out 10-11 miles for a catch.

When Angela Godfrey-Goldstein called Shlomo Dror, Israeli Ministry of Defense spokesman, to tell the Navy to stop machine gunning barely a meter over the heads of fishermen and internationals, he accused the rights advocates of being provocateurs, terrorists, supporters of Hamas. “The people of Gaza have plenty of food. They don’t need to go fishing,” he snarled.

“When the Ministry of Defense learns that this voyage brings a delegation of European parliamentarians, maybe he will begin to “get it.” Average citizens of the world, even decision makers, are up in arms, non-violently, against the collective punishment, the state terrorism of the Israeli government. And we are restoring dignity to those abandoned human beings, just as we would have wanted to do in the past to others in other ghettoes” said Godfrey-Goldstein.

“I had only heard about these episodes before I came to Gaza. I can’t begin to tell you the horror these men face every day by bullies in the Israeli Navy,” added an outraged Schermerhorn. “What risks they take we don’t even know about. The good news was the fishermen were ecstatic when they pulled up the nets. It was one of the largest catches they had had in years.”