Israel attacks aid ships in international water heading for Gaza. At least 10 dead
Coles Notes: Turkey has cut all ties. EU is pissed and many countries denounce the attacks. And the Arab League of Nations is having an emergency meeting tomorrow morning. Deaths could be as high as 19 with many of the passengers being Turkish.
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/0...aid-death.html
At least 10 people are dead and dozens are wounded after Israeli commandos stormed a flotilla of six ships trying to deliver aid to Gaza.
Local media reports suggest the death toll may have reached 19.
The incident happened more than 60 kilometres out to sea in international waters and the two sides are offering conflicting accounts of what happened on the ships.
A reporter on one of the boats said the Israelis fired at the vessel before boarding it, and the Israelis said they only opened fire after being attacked by activists with sticks, knives and guns.
At least four Israeli soldiers were wounded in the clashes, officials said.
Tensions rise
Israel's Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Danny Ayalon said Israel regrets the loss of life, but he called the moves from the flotilla "premeditated" and an "outrageous provocation."
"The organizers are well known for their ties to global jihad, al-Qaeda and Hamas," he said.
"On board the ship, we found weapons prepared in advance and used against our forces."
Ayalon said Israel offered to deliver the aid supplies through the "appropriate" channels, and did "everything" it could to avoid a violent outcome.
Ghassan Khatib, a Palestinian government spokesman, said the government "condemns the brutality in which the Israeli government treated this peaceful attempt to break the siege on Gaza."
He said the Palestinians were calling on the international community to pressure Israel to end the Gaza blockade.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Israel had committed a massacre and declared three days of mourning.
The activists were headed to Gaza on a mission meant to draw attention to a three-year-old Israeli blockade of the coastal territory.
The aid flotilla was organized in part by the Free Gaza Movement, an international group of pro-Palestinian activists that claims the blockade is unjust and a violation of international law.
Israel has said it will tow the ships to the port of Ashdod, where a special passport and detention centre has been set up, the BBC reported.
Turkey condemns attack
The European Union has called for a full inquiry to determine what happened, but a number of countries have already condemned Israel's actions.
Protesters take part in a demonstration at Taksim square in Istanbul on Monday. About 10,000 people have gathered in the Turkish capital to protest Israel's military assault on a convoy of six aid ships. (Thanassis Stavrakis/Associated Press)
Many of the people aboard the ships were Turkish, and Turkey condemned the actions, while the Israeli ambassadors in Sweden, Spain, Denmark and Greece were summoned for meetings.
The Turkish deputy prime minister called on the United Nations Security Council to convene an emergency session about Israel and said Turkey is cancelling military drills with Israel.
An estimated 10,000 Turks came together Monday to march from Israel's Consulate in Istanbul toward the city's main square, shouting slogans denouncing Israel. The march follows an attempt by a group of protesters to storm the Israeli Consulate.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Canada as part of an international tour, but there have been several calls for him to cut his visit short so he can return to Israel to deal with the crisis.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/0...#ixzz0pVQB71FY
Last edited by cycosis; 05-31-2010 at 05:50 AM.
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