Middle East Quartet discourages Gaza flotillas
NEW YORK - The Middle East diplomatic Quartet on Saturday discouraged new flotillas from sailing to Gaza to provide humanitarian aid, it said in a statement.
"The Quartet recognizes that Israel has legitimate security concerns that must continue to be safeguarded," said the group, representing the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations.
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NEW YORK - The Middle East diplomatic Quartet on Saturday discouraged new flotillas from sailing to Gaza to provide humanitarian aid, it said in a statement.
"The Quartet recognizes that Israel has legitimate security concerns that must continue to be safeguarded," said the group, representing the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations.
more>>
Flotilla Press Conference | Athens, Greece | July 3, 2011
Leftist Greek MPs accuse government of caving to Israeli pressure
to stop Gaza flotilla
Eight ships in the Gaza-bound flotilla were barred from leaving the Greek ports where they are anchored in the wake of an order issued on Friday by the Greek government. Flotilla participants and members of the leftist opposition in Greece have accused the Socialist government of caving in to Israeli pressure - a claim rejected by Greek Foreign Minister Stavros Lambrinidis.
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to stop Gaza flotilla
Eight ships in the Gaza-bound flotilla were barred from leaving the Greek ports where they are anchored in the wake of an order issued on Friday by the Greek government. Flotilla participants and members of the leftist opposition in Greece have accused the Socialist government of caving in to Israeli pressure - a claim rejected by Greek Foreign Minister Stavros Lambrinidis.
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"Israel afraid of the truth"
Interview with Dr. Paul Larudee, Co-Founder of Free Palestine Movement in Greece
Press TV: Israel has threatened to take military action against the humanitarian aid flotilla, what is Tel Aviv afraid of in your opinion?
Larudee: To put it in simple terms, they are afraid of the truth, because that is what a non-violent effort is about. Non-violent efforts tend to expose hypocrisy and human rights abuses and all this sort of things.
video here >>
Interview with Dr. Paul Larudee, Co-Founder of Free Palestine Movement in Greece
Press TV: Israel has threatened to take military action against the humanitarian aid flotilla, what is Tel Aviv afraid of in your opinion?
Larudee: To put it in simple terms, they are afraid of the truth, because that is what a non-violent effort is about. Non-violent efforts tend to expose hypocrisy and human rights abuses and all this sort of things.
video here >>
Gaza Mobilizes for Freedom Flotilla
An international flotilla of nine ships and hundreds of crew and passengers is a huge undertaking, in Gaza as much as anywhere. Mahmoud Elmadhoun knows this better than most. A member of Gaza’s Higher Government Committee, as well as the Governmental Committee for Breaking the Siege and Receiving Delegations (GCBS), which is tasked with welcoming solidarity missions to Gaza, he just finished hosting the Miles of Smiles convoy of 55 European dentists. Now he could face one of the most daunting challenges in the GCBS’ history: Freedom Flotilla – Stay Human.
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An international flotilla of nine ships and hundreds of crew and passengers is a huge undertaking, in Gaza as much as anywhere. Mahmoud Elmadhoun knows this better than most. A member of Gaza’s Higher Government Committee, as well as the Governmental Committee for Breaking the Siege and Receiving Delegations (GCBS), which is tasked with welcoming solidarity missions to Gaza, he just finished hosting the Miles of Smiles convoy of 55 European dentists. Now he could face one of the most daunting challenges in the GCBS’ history: Freedom Flotilla – Stay Human.
more>>
Israeli Orgs Statement of Support for the Gaza-Bound Freedom Flotilla
We, Israeli organizations, Palestinians and Jews, declare our support for the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla and its declared goals: to break the Israeli siege on Gaza – both on the sea and land – which represents part of the ongoing Israeli occupation. We denounce the slanderous campaign of the government of Israel against the flotilla and its participants, and warn against the government’s use of these lies as justification for additional violent actions against the participants of this legitimate political protest. The flotilla to Gaza is a brave act of political protest, which expresses solidarity with the Palestinian people and the opposition throughout the world to Israeli occupation policies, the ongoing siege on Gaza and the collective punishment of civilians. Today the Gaza Strip is a massive prison for its 1.5 million residents, for whom basic rights are denied. The right of the Palestinians in Gaza to maintain direct contact with the outside world, their right to open their port, their right to receive and send ships, their right to import and export goods and to develop their economy, precisely as for Israel these rights exist. The state of Israel must end its direct and indirect control over the Gaza Strip, as part of its obligations grounded in international law and to end its occupation regime over the Palestinian Territory and to permit the existence of an independent Palestinian state in the 1967 borders. We emphasise that in contrast to government declarations, the very act of the flotilla is a non-violent one, and in case of an attack by the army the activists are preparing for opposition that is also to be non-violent. In an announcement from one of the members of the international coordinating team of the flotilla, which was issued in response to claims of the security apparatus in Israel, it is explicitly noted that “there are no weapons on any of the ships, and on board all of them are tens of international journalists who can attest to this. The passengers undergo training in non-violence and sign a commitment not to use violence.” We denounce attempts of the government of Israel to create an atmosphere of fear of the flotilla and to discourage participation in it. The government of Israel wishes to create an unfounded atmosphere of fear through knowingly spreading lies about the so-called preparations for violent resistance to kill soldiers, and the intention of peace activists participating in the flotilla to bring weapons with them to Gaza; in parallel, it is exerting unprecedented pressure on international journalists, lest they join the flotilla in order to cover it. This media campaign, intended to sow fear and hatred in the Israeli public, further arouses suspicion that an additional goal is to justify the harsh and dangerous results which are liable to occur in case of a violent takeover of the ships and harm to their passengers. We call on the government and security forces to permit the ships to enter Gaza and unload their humanitarian cargo in peace, and hope the ships arrive safely to their destination. We call on the government of Israel to immediately end the siege of Gaza.
For additional details:
Adam Keller: 054-2340749.
Ya'akov Manor: 050 5733276
Alternative Information Center (AIC)
Coalition of Women for Peace
Combatants for Peace
Gush Shalom
Hithabrut-Tarabut
Israeli Committee against House Demolitions (ICAHD)
New Profile
Ta’ayush
Yesh Gvul
We, Israeli organizations, Palestinians and Jews, declare our support for the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla and its declared goals: to break the Israeli siege on Gaza – both on the sea and land – which represents part of the ongoing Israeli occupation. We denounce the slanderous campaign of the government of Israel against the flotilla and its participants, and warn against the government’s use of these lies as justification for additional violent actions against the participants of this legitimate political protest. The flotilla to Gaza is a brave act of political protest, which expresses solidarity with the Palestinian people and the opposition throughout the world to Israeli occupation policies, the ongoing siege on Gaza and the collective punishment of civilians. Today the Gaza Strip is a massive prison for its 1.5 million residents, for whom basic rights are denied. The right of the Palestinians in Gaza to maintain direct contact with the outside world, their right to open their port, their right to receive and send ships, their right to import and export goods and to develop their economy, precisely as for Israel these rights exist. The state of Israel must end its direct and indirect control over the Gaza Strip, as part of its obligations grounded in international law and to end its occupation regime over the Palestinian Territory and to permit the existence of an independent Palestinian state in the 1967 borders. We emphasise that in contrast to government declarations, the very act of the flotilla is a non-violent one, and in case of an attack by the army the activists are preparing for opposition that is also to be non-violent. In an announcement from one of the members of the international coordinating team of the flotilla, which was issued in response to claims of the security apparatus in Israel, it is explicitly noted that “there are no weapons on any of the ships, and on board all of them are tens of international journalists who can attest to this. The passengers undergo training in non-violence and sign a commitment not to use violence.” We denounce attempts of the government of Israel to create an atmosphere of fear of the flotilla and to discourage participation in it. The government of Israel wishes to create an unfounded atmosphere of fear through knowingly spreading lies about the so-called preparations for violent resistance to kill soldiers, and the intention of peace activists participating in the flotilla to bring weapons with them to Gaza; in parallel, it is exerting unprecedented pressure on international journalists, lest they join the flotilla in order to cover it. This media campaign, intended to sow fear and hatred in the Israeli public, further arouses suspicion that an additional goal is to justify the harsh and dangerous results which are liable to occur in case of a violent takeover of the ships and harm to their passengers. We call on the government and security forces to permit the ships to enter Gaza and unload their humanitarian cargo in peace, and hope the ships arrive safely to their destination. We call on the government of Israel to immediately end the siege of Gaza.
For additional details:
Adam Keller: 054-2340749.
Ya'akov Manor: 050 5733276
Alternative Information Center (AIC)
Coalition of Women for Peace
Combatants for Peace
Gush Shalom
Hithabrut-Tarabut
Israeli Committee against House Demolitions (ICAHD)
New Profile
Ta’ayush
Yesh Gvul
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