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Israeli ships intercept Gaza-bound aid flotilla

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Israeli ships intercept Gaza-bound aid flotilla

Israeli warships intercepted a six-ship Palestinian aid convoy sailing for the Gaza Strip earlier today, killing at least ten and wounding up to 30 people on board, local television networks reported.

A spokesman for a Turkish charity involved in the campaign said two people were killed when Israeli forces stormed a Turkish ship leading the flotilla.

“Our friends on the ship told us that two people were killed and around 30 others were wounded on the Mavi Marmara ship,” said Serkan Nergis from the Foundation of Humanitarian Relief (IHH), an Istanbul-based Islamist charity.

He said their communication with the ship was currently cut off.

Other reports from the the Turkish ship leading the flotilla claimed that Israeli navy forces had fired at the ship and boarded it, wounding the captain.

Israel Radio said at least one ship was boarded by Israeli troops backed by helicopters.

The Israeli military has refused to comment on the reports.

The reports came just after daybreak, with the flotilla still well away from the Gaza shore. Israel had declared it would not allow the ships to reach Gaza.

Gaza’s Al-Aqsa television showed footage of Israeli commandos descending from helicopters and clashing with activists, as well as several wounded people lying on the deck of the ship.

The ships, carrying more than 700 passengers, were on the last leg of a high-profile mission to deliver some 10,000 tonnes of building and other supplies to Gaza, which has been under a crippling Israeli blockade since 2007.

Huwaida Arraf, one of the organisers of the Free Gaza Movement, said yesterday that the six-ship flotilla began the journey from international waters off the coast of Cyprus on Sunday afternoon after two days of delays. She said they expected to reach Gaza, about 250 miles (400km) away, later today, and that two more ships would follow in “a second wave”.

Ms Arraf added that the flotilla was “fully prepared for the different scenarios” that might arise, and organizers were hopeful that Israeli authorities would “do what’s right” and not stop the convoy.

“We fully intend to go to Gaza regardless of any intimidation or threats of violence against us,” she said. “They are going to have to forcefully stop us.”

After nightfall last night, three Israeli navy missile boats left their base in Haifa, steaming out to sea to confront the activists’ ships.

Two hours later, Israel Radio broadcast a recording of one of the missile boats warning the flotilla not to approach Gaza.

“If you ignore this order and enter the blockaded area, the Israeli navy will be forced to take all the necessary measures in order to enforce this blockade,” the radio message continued.

The al-Jazeera satellite channel reported that the ships changed course to try to avoid a nighttime confrontation, preferring a daylight showdown for better publicity.

The flotilla, which includes three cargo ships and three passenger ships, is trying to draw attention to Israel’s three-year blockade of the Gaza Strip. The boats are carrying items that Israel bars from reaching Gaza, like cement and other building materials. The activists said they also were carrying hundreds of electric-powered wheelchairs, prefabricated homes and water purifiers.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said that after a security check, permitted humanitarian aid confiscated from the boats will be transferred to Gaza through authorised channels. However, Israel would not transfer items it has banned from Gaza under its blockade rules. Palmor said that for example, cement would be allowed only if it is tied to a specific project.

This is the ninth time that the Free Gaza movement has tried to ship in humanitarian aid to Gaza since August 2008.


Israeli ships intercept Gaza-bound aid flotilla - Times Online
 
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