Moderators: Elvis, DrVolin, Jeff
by Laodicean » Wed Jun 29, 2011 12:40 am
by AlicetheKurious » Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:41 am
by JackRiddler » Thu Jun 30, 2011 7:57 pm
http://counterpunch.org/suchan06302011.html
June 30, 2011
An Open Letter to Sen. Mark Kirk
Senator Calls for US Special Forces to Attack the Gaza Flotilla
By MAX SUCHAN, KATHY KELLY and ROBERT NAIMAN
Senator Mark Kirk
Washington, DC
524 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington DC, 20510
June 29th, 2011
Dear Senator Kirk,
We are Illinois residents writing to you from Athens, Greece. Just before leaving the United States, we wrote to inform your office about our intent to sail on "The Audacity of Hope," as part of the US Boat to Gaza project. In our letters, we explained why we were traveling to Gaza. We told you of our previous experiences living among Palestinians who lack access to basic necessities, such as clean water, because of the blockade. Referring to Gaza as the world's largest open-air prison, we mentioned how hard it has been for people to rebuild after previous lethal assaults, especially the Operation Cast Lead attack which ended, after 22 days, on January 18, 2009. According to B'tselem, the foremost Israeli Human Rights Organization, Operation Cast Lead caused the deaths of 1,389 Palestinians in Gaza. Of those, 344 were children. Of the 13 Israelis who were killed, four were soldiers killed by friendly fire.
Knowing that you and your staff care deeply about the consequences of unemployment, poor education and dangerously limited health care delivery, we pointed out related statistics affecting people in Gaza where 45% of the population is unemployed and hospital administrators are sounding the alarm because they are running out of crucial medicines. Half of Gaza's 1.6 million people are under age 18.
As you've recently noted, a flotilla of ships plans to arrive in Gaza. Our ship will carry 3,000 letters addressed to Gazan children and families. Other boats are carrying humanitarian assistance.
Greek authorities have been checking into various complaints which have stalled the flotilla's progress. In our case, a complaint was lodged by the Israel Law Center, located in Tel Aviv, suggesting that our boat is not seaworthy. Two of the boats have been sabotaged while docked in the harbor, causing further delays.
A website, http://www.military.com, reports that you said the United States should "make available all necessary special operations and naval support to the Israeli Navy to effectively disable flotilla vessels before they can pose a threat to Israeli coastal security or put Israeli lives at risk."
You have an unusual opportunity to demonstrate thoughtful reconsideration of your earlier decision. Op-ed pieces have appeared in Israel's Haaretz newspaper, encouraging the Israeli government to let the flotilla pass.
"There is nearly nothing which more effectively delegitimizes Israel - and makes Israel look more like an uncaring blockhead state - than does the siege of Gaza," wrote Bradley Burston, Senior Editor of Haaretz and a former Israeli Defense Force medic. "The siege benefits Hamas in a thousand ways and Israel in none. But there is one thing that does the work of delegitimization even better: attacking civilians in order to protect the siege. Enter the 21st century. Before it's too late. You're not young commandos anymore... Do your nation a favor - act your age. The flotilla is not a terrorist fleet. It is not an arms shipment. The flotilla is, however, a statement about Israel, a judgment of its policies, and, in the end, the verdict will come directly from you."
Senator Kirk, we are your constituents. It's not too late for you to acknowledge that your earlier call for military action against us jeopardizes our safety and to reverse your claim which insinuates that we are dangerous people. We write with utmost respect for our collective responsibility to secure a better world, breaking the irrational cycle of military aggression and upholding basic human rights of all people.
Sincerely,
Max Suchan, Chicago IL
Kathy Kelly, Chicago IL
Robert Naiman, Champaign-Urbana
by Laodicean » Thu Jun 30, 2011 8:12 pm
by seemslikeadream » Thu Jun 30, 2011 9:08 pm
Washington Okays Attack on Unarmed U.S. Ship
by Stephen Zunes
The Obama administration appears to have given a green light to an Israeli attack on an unarmed flotilla carrying peace and human rights activists — including a vessel with 50 Americans on board — bound for the besieged Gaza Strip. At a press conference on June 24, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticized the flotilla organized by the Free Gaza Campaign by saying it would "provoke actions by entering into Israeli waters and creating a situation in which the Israelis have the right to defend themselves."
Clinton did not explain why a country had “the right to defend themselves” against ships which are clearly no threat. Not only have organizers of the flotilla gone to great steps to ensure are there no weapons on board, the only cargo bound for Gaza on the U.S. ship are letters of solidarity to the Palestinians in that besieged enclave who have suffered under devastating Israeli bombardments, a crippling blockade, and a right-wing Islamist government. Nor did Clinton explain why the State Department suddenly considers the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of the port of Gaza to be “Israeli waters,” when the entire international community recognizes Israeli territorial waters as being well to the northeast of the ships’ intended route.
The risk of an Israeli attack on the flotilla is real. Israeli commandoes illegally assaulted a similar flotilla in international waters on May 31 of last year, killing nine people on board one of the vessels, including Furkan Dogan, a 19-year old U.S. citizen. Scores of others, including a number of Americans, were brutally beaten and more than a dozen others were shot but survived their wounds. According to a UN investigation, based on eyewitness testimony and analysis by a forensic pathologist and ballistic expert, Dogan was initially shot while filming the assault and then murdered while lying face down with a bullet shot at close range in the back of the head. The United States was the only one of the 47 members of the UN Human Rights Council to vote against the adoption of the report. The Obama administration never filed a complaint with the Israeli government, demonstrating its willingness to allow the armed forces of U.S. allies to murder U.S. citizens on the high seas.
As indicated by Clinton’s statement of last week, the administration appears to be willing to let it happen again.
Congressional Response
Last year, 329 out of 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives signed a letter that referred to Israel's attack that killed Dogan and the others as an act of “self-defense” which they "strongly support." A Senate letter — signed by 87 out of 100 senators — went on record "fully" supporting what it called "Israel's right to self-defense," claiming that the effort to relieve critical shortages of food and medicine in the besieged Gaza Strip was simply part of a "clever tactical and diplomatic ploy" by "Israel's opponents" to "challenge its international standing."
But not everyone in Congress believes the assaulting and killing human rights activists on the high seas is legitimate. Last week, on June 24, six members of Congress signed a letter to Secretary Clinton requesting that she “do everything in her power to work with the Israeli government to ensure the safety of the U.S. citizens on board.” As of this writing, they have not received a response.
Earlier in the week, the State Department issued a public statement to discourage Americans from taking part in the second Gaza flotilla because they might be attacked by Israeli forces. Yet thus far neither the State Department nor the White House has issued a public statement demanding that Israel not attack Americans legally traveling in international waters. Indeed, on Friday, State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland implied that the United States would blame those taking part in the flotilla rather than the rightist Israeli government should anything happen to them. Like those in the early 1960s who claimed civil rights protesters were responsible for the attacks by white racist mobs because they had “provoked them,” Nuland stated, “Groups that seek to break Israel’s maritime blockade of Gaza are taking irresponsible and provocative actions that risk the safety of their passengers.” Again, The Obama administration didn't offer even one word encouraging caution or restraint by the Israeli government, nor did it mention that the International Red Cross and other advocates of international humanitarian law recognize that the Israeli blockade is illegal.
Who's On Board
Passengers of the U.S. boat, christened The Audacity of Hope, include celebrated novelist Alice Walker, holocaust survivor Hedy Epstein, former CIA analyst Ray McGovern, veteran foreign service officer and retired lieutenant colonel Ann Wright, Israeli-American linguistics professor Hagit Borer, and prominent peace and human rights activists like Medea Benjamin, Robert Naiman, Steve Fake, and Kathy Kelly. Ten other boats are carrying hundreds of other civilians from dozens of other countries, along with nearly three thousand tons of aid. Those on board include members of national parliaments and other prominent political figures, writers, artists, clergy from various faith traditions, journalists, and athletes.
Fifteen ships have previously sailed or attempted to sail to Gaza as part of the Free Gaza Campaign. None was found to contain any weapons or materials that could be used for military purposes. The current flotilla organizers have stated that their cargoes are “open to international inspection.” Despite this, however, the Obama State Department insists that the Israelis have the right to intercept the ships due to the “vital importance to Israel’s security of ensuring that all cargo bound for Gaza is appropriately screened for illegal arms and dual-use materials.”
Though the flotilla organizers have made clear that the U.S. boat is only carrying letters of support for the people of Gaza, the State Department has also threatened participants with “fines and incarceration” if they attempt to provide “material support or other resources to or for the benefit of a designated foreign terrorist organization, such as Hamas.”
As with many actions supporting Palestinian rights, the coalition of groups endorsing the flotilla includes pro-Palestinian groups as well as peace, human rights, religious, pacifist and liberal organizations, including Progressive Democrats of America, Pax Christi, Peace Action, Nonviolence International, Jewish Voice for Peace, War Resisters League, and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. Despite this, Brad Sherman (D-CA), ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Relations Committee’s subcommittee on terrorism, nonproliferation and trade, has claimed that organizers of the flotilla have “clear terrorist ties” and has called upon U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to prosecute U.S. citizens involved with the flotilla and ban foreign participants from ever entering the United States.
Israel's Position
Largely as a result of last year’s flotilla, Israel has somewhat relaxed its draconian siege on the territory, which had resulted in a major public health crisis. The State Department has gone to some lengths to praise Israel for allowing some construction material into the Gaza Strip to make possible the rebuilding of some of the thousands of homes, businesses and public facilities destroyed in Israel’s devastating U.S.-backed 2008-2009 military offensive, which resulted in the deaths of over 800 civilians. At no point, however, has the Obama administration ever criticized Israel for destroying those civilian structures in the first place.
As with many potentially confrontational nonviolent direct actions, there are genuine differences within the peace and human rights community regarding the timing, the nature, and other aspects of the forthcoming flotilla. However, the response to the Obama administration’s position on the flotilla has been overwhelmingly negative. Many among his progressive base, already disappointed at his failure to take a tougher line against the rightist Israeli government as well as his reluctance to embrace human rights and international law as a basis for Israeli-Palestinian peace, feel increasingly alienated from the president.
More significantly, the Obama administration’s response may signal a return to the Reagan administration’s policies of defending the killing of U.S. human rights workers in order to discourage grassroots acts of international solidarity, as when Reagan officials sought to blame the victims and exonerate the perpetrators for the murder of four American churchwomen by the El Salvadoran junta and the murder of American engineer Ben Linder by the Nicaraguan Contras. Perhaps the Obama administration hopes that giving a green light to an Israeli attack on the U.S. ship and other vessels in the flotilla will serve as a warning. Perhaps they hope that Americans volunteering for groups like Peace Brigades International, Witness for Peace, Nonviolent Peaceforce, Christian Peacemaker Teams, International Solidarity Movement, and other groups operating in conflict zones like Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala, El Salvador, Sri Lanka, Palestine, Nepal, Indonesia and elsewhere will think twice, knowing that the U.S. government will not live up to its obligations to try to protect nonviolent U.S. activists from violence perpetrated by allied governments.
Indeed, nothing frightens a militaristic state more than the power of nonviolent action.
by Jeff » Thu Jun 30, 2011 9:49 pm
SOMEWHERE IN GREECE - We're in the lecture hall in which the people sailing on the Tahrir, the Canadian ship taking part in the Gaza-bound flotilla, are being briefed.
The Tahrir passengers are asked to decide: "Where would you prefer to be when the [Israeli] commandos commandeer the ship?"
Based on the experience of previous Gaza-bound boats, with the exception of the Mavi Marmara, the lecturer presents the options. "On deck you will be exposed to a few minutes of physical violence from the soldiers that will feel like a few hours," he says.
"From previous experience, the soldiers, en route to the captain's cabin, will step on people's heads. You won't move, but they'll see you as the aggressor. The commanders know very well that we're not armed. But the simple soldier has been brainwashed, and he'll be afraid."
I take a look at the other people in the room and ask myself, "Why do they need this?"
The oldest person planning to sail on the Canadian vessel is a 77-year-old American woman (not a 69-year-old one, as I mistakenly wrote in yesterday's article - not even referring to this particular woman ). There's also another woman and a man over 70, who both smilingly corrected my mistake as well.
...
by seemslikeadream » Fri Jul 01, 2011 12:31 pm
Breaking: Greek Authorities Intercept U.S. Boat For Gaza Minutes After It Set Sail (Audio Report)
Democracy Now! producer Aaron Mate files exclusive audio reports on board the Gaza-bound "Audacity of Hope". The ship set sail from Greece at approximately 9:30 a.m. EDT but was soon stopped by Greek authorities. Listen to Aaron’s reports as the scene develops.
by StarmanSkye » Fri Jul 01, 2011 5:50 pm
by Bruce Dazzling » Fri Jul 01, 2011 5:55 pm
StarmanSkye wrote:The convoluted 'logic' painstakingly used to TRY and condemn a humanitarian flotilla as an aggressive provocation that Israel has every right to repulse by force is yet another symptom of a criminal regime that is pathologized to accepting violence as the only course of living 'correctly' -- and which an abject, American faux-government cannot EVER appear to be too servile and condescending to.
It is too sick for words. The banality of evil comes to mind.
My heart and spirit goes out to embrace and encourage all those who are part of this valiant, courageous, audacious effort.
"Remain human."
Indeed.
by crikkett » Fri Jul 01, 2011 7:15 pm
Jeff wrote:Link to the Canadian boat, Tahrir
The blockade of Gaza reaches the shores of Greece!
As it attempts to sail, the Canadian Boat to Gaza, the Tahrir, blockaded in Greece
Greek coast guard are now on board the Tahrir attempting to arrest Sandra Rush, Jewish Canadian member of the Canada boat to Gaza Steering Committee, who is refusing to surrender boat's registration papers.
by Stephen Morgan » Sat Jul 02, 2011 11:12 am
Some of my FCO sources tell me that the Israeli government has now been supplying the Greek government with emergency supplies of tear gas and other unspecified “anti-riot equipment”, as the Greek government ran out. Isn’t the Greek government lucky to have a friend like Natanyahu?
by Jeff » Sat Jul 02, 2011 1:01 pm
by Stephen Morgan » Sun Jul 03, 2011 7:04 am
by crikkett » Sun Jul 03, 2011 12:27 pm
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2011/07/201173115538534109.html
Stranded flotilla activists still hopeful
Pro-Palestinian activists have their sights set on sailing to Gaza, despite Greek authorities blocking them.
David Poort and Dahr Jamail Last Modified: 03 Jul 2011 15:08
Greece says its ban on all Gaza-bound ships leaving port was to protect pro-Palestinian activists[Reuters]
Most of the nine vessels that pro-Palestinian activists planned to sail on as part of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla in defiance of an Israeli blockade remain stranded in Greece ports, after Greek authorities forbade them from embarking on the journey.
Two vessels have been sabotaged and are currently unable to sail, while most of the others remain under the watchful eye of Greek coastguard or military personnel.
Despite their growing frustration and diminishing morale, some activists are hopeful that their Gaza Flotilla II would finally be able to make the journey and break Israel's siege on the Palestinian territory.
'Let us sail'
Members of the Dutch-Italian boat issued an open letter to the Greek Prime Minister Georgios Papandreou on Sunday, expressing outrage over his "government's decision to close the ports of Greece to our humanitarian initiative, even by force if needed".
The letter demanded that they be allowed to sail and said, "It is totally incomprehensible to us and fills us with just wrath that the Greek government closes the ports to our ships...
"You and your government acting as an ally of Israel in the Palestinian question means you also seem to have forgotten the struggle against the military dictatorship in your own country."
Joe Meadors, a US Navy veteran, is one of the roughly 100 passengers on board a flotilla vessel that finds itself standed. Meadors, however, still expects to sail.
"We are waiting for the Greek government to release us," he told Al Jazeera, "We are here for the long haul, and we're ready to go just as soon as the Greeks say we can go. We're pleased we can do something for the Palestinians and remain excited to go."
Khalid Tuhraani, an American Palestinian activist whose ship is stuck in the port of Corfu, is also frustrated and feels that it perhaps would have been better if the flotilla had orginated from a port in an Arab country such as Tunisia or Egypt.
"However, many of the Arab countries have, like Greece now, become hostages of the political will of the United States and Israel,” he said.
Tuhraani said he remained committed to doing what was necessary to end the Israeli blockade against Gaza, but he expressed disappointment at the Greek government.
"We chose Greece because this country has a history of support for the Palestinian struggle for freedom,” he said.
"Unfortunately we did not expect the Greek government to just roll over and die. But the Middle East Quartet issued a statement against our flotilla, so I think the pressure on the Greek government just might have been too enormous for it to bear."
Jailed captain
The Greek government put out a statement on Friday confirming that the Greek coastguard had enforced a decision by civil defence authorities to prevent all flotilla vessels from leaving Greek ports.
Also on Friday a US boat attempted to leave port and sail to Gaza, but was intercepted by the Greek coastguard who towed it back to port where it is currently detained.
The boat's captain, John Klusmire, was arrested by Greek authorities, charged with a felony, and is now in jail.
Robert Naiman, a passenger on the boat who is also the Policy Director for Just Foreign Policy in Washington, DC, told Al Jazeera that Klusmire had been in a cell for nearly two days without food, water, or a bed.
"We are preoccupied with freeing our captain. He is entitled to a visit from the US embassy, and this hasn’t happened, which violates international law, and they’ve been holding him for nearly two days now."
Naiman said his group still hoped to sail, but their priority was pressuring the Greek and US governments to change the conditions for their jailed captain.
'Leaving tomorrow'
Dylan Penner is on the steering committee of the Canadian boat that is currently stuck in port on the island of Crete.
Penner told Al Jazeera that a Greek MP came to their boat on Saturday and pledged to discuss the situation in the Greek Parliament.
"We are hoping to leave tomorrow, and that is what we are planning on,” Penner said. "The plan is for as many boats as are able to leave tomorrow."
Thomas Sommer-Houdeville is an activist with a French boat that is being watched closely by the coastguard.
"We are quite blocked," he told Al Jazeera, "It’s a difficult situation. We will try to do something, but it is quite hard. They have been very clear they will not let us sail. We have a few days in front of us to work with, maybe another week."
For now, there is no indication from the Greek government that the travel restriction currently imposed on the flotilla will be lifted.
by StarmanSkye » Sun Jul 03, 2011 1:09 pm
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 171 guests
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
Site design by Likely Arts based on "Deluxe" by Artodia.