Israel Navy: “Mavi Marmara, you are approaching an area of hostilities which is under a naval blockade. The Gaza area coastal region and Gaza harbor are closed to all maritime traffic. The Israeli government supports delivery of humanitarian supplies to the civilian population in the Gaza Strip and invites you to enter the Ashdod port. Delivery of supplies in accordance with the authorities’ regulations will be through the formal land crossings and under your observation, after which you can return to your home ports on the vessels on which you have arrived.”
Response: “Negative, negative.”
Of course the response was negative - because the international supporters of Hamas gathered on the Mavi Marmara were hellbent on assaulting/lynching/kidnapping IDF personnel.
The facts about what actually happened on the “Mavi Marmara” in the early hours of this morning won’t in any way affect the tidal wave of hate and self-righteous condemnation that is descending on Israel but if it interests you then you should read Ron Ben Yishai’s account of events here.
As I write this the BBC is reporting that up to 19 people have been killed during the seizure of the Free Gaza Flotilla by the Israeli Navy. It also says that the “Mavi Marmara”, the flotilla’s flagship, is still not fully under Israel’s control so it’s not impossible that there will be further casualties. Some quick points…
1.
Turkey will probably break diplomatic relations with Israel over this. The convoy was supported by the Turkish government, the main charity behind the convoy is Turkish and most of the people on board the “Mavi Marmara” are Turkish. This will culminate the cooling in Israeli-Turkish relations that has been going on since the AK Party came to power in the latter country.
2.
I watched the live feed from the “Mavi Marmara” in the hours leading up to the arrival of the naval commandos. Judging from the pop-eyed rage expressed by some of those aboard towards the yahudiler I am not surprised matters have come to this. Some of the passengers were evidently longing for martyrdom. You can see one of them saying so before she left Istanbul:
Regardless of this, the deaths represent a PR disaster for Israel and it remains to be seen whether it was worth taking the inevitable risks associated with such an operation in order to keep Hamas isolated. And there’s also the question of what approach Israel will take to the next convoy, and the one after that.
3.
A number of European politicians were denied permission to board the convoy in Cyprus by that country’s legitimate government. Showing their profound concern for human rights, justice and equality they made their way to the part of the island under Turkish military occupation since 1974 - a zone which has been heavily settled by mainland Turks and from which the Greek population has been ethnically cleansed in its entirety - in order to join the flotilla from there.
Riad Malki, the PA’s Foreign Minister was in Buenos Aires yesterday and gave an interview to Pagina/12. With regard to the Hamas regime running Gaza he said the following,
Here’s a collection of Winograd’s thoughts as shared with Goldberg:
Why the US brought 9/11 on itself: “Most of the hijackers were from Saudi Arabia and were angry at the proliferation of U.S. bases and forces in Saudi Arabia, so I think there’s a great degree of pushback over the presence of U.S. troops all over the world.”
In answer to the question, “if we left Afghanistan, wouldn’t the Taliban shut down these women-led NGOs?” “Well, that would be the whole point in investing in women-led NGOS, to make them stronger and to help women emerge in leadership positions politically. Under the Soviet-influenced government in Afghanistan, women had far more freedom than they do today, after how many years of American occupation?”
Why Jews are to blame for antisemitism. “Zionism categorizes Jews as a race, which makes it easier for Jews to be targeted.”
Why a ‘one-state’ solution doesn’t apparently involve killing most of the Jews currently living in Israel in order to be workable. “I’m a believer in equality, one voice, one vote, Israelis and Palestinians, one voice, one vote, that’s my personal position.”
And the customary “as-a-Jew” narcissism. “I’ve labeled myself as a Jewish woman of conscience who is compelled to speak out because of the suffering in the world.”
Awful. Just awful.
But here’s a question for J-Street. According to this puff piece about Winograd, one of her enthusiastic backers is Lila Garrett, a J-Street Board Member. Is supporting a candidate who, in her own words, reveals herself to be a Soviet apologist, an advocate of Israel’s elimination, a believer in the thesis that the US brought 9/11 on itself, a supporter of the equation of Zionism with racism, and an optimist on the Taliban’s attitude toward the rights of women compatible with the “pro-Israel, pro-peace” branding?
All those who insist that the IDF works hand-in-glove with right-wing Jewish settlers might want to check this piece on YNet:
In an unprecedented move, the administrative order against settler Neriah Ofen, keeping him away from the West Bank, was extended to also include the Jerusalem neighborhoods of Pisgat Zeev and Neve Yaakov.
The order was signed by GOC Home Front Command Major General Yair Golan.
Ofen, a right-wing activist, is well known to the security services from the days of the Gaza disengagement, when he was suspected of planning attacks against Arabs. He was also under administrative detention.
Last year he was ordered to keep away from the West Bank after vengeance attacks against Palestinians were attributed to him. As a result, he moved to the Pisgat Zeev neighborhood in Jerusalem where he began working to “preserve the Jewish character” of the neighborhood.
His activities included “keeping Arabs away,” and preventing the sale of property to Arabs. The Shin Bet monitored his activities and again it was decided to keep him away from the area.
The IDF said that the order to keep him away from these areas was issued for the sake of national security, public safety and the maintenance of public order. The ban was issued in light of information presented by security officials and in accordance with their recommendations.
Read it all. Hat-tip to ATFP’s news digest, which - unlike the Viva Palestina’s of this world - doesn’t filter out the politically inconvenient stories.
Breaking that evil Israeli blockade of Gaza can leave you with a hefty appetite. Next time you’re confronting Zionism, why not pop in here for some r’n'r?
And no, I’m not minimizing the daily hardships faced by ordinary Gazans - but those who would have us believe that Gaza is a modern day Warsaw Ghetto might want to check these figures. As I’ve said before, if these numbers are fabricated, prove it.
Last week’s ‘Everybody Draw Mohammed Day‘ generated a number of depressinging stupid responses; nowhere more so than in Pakistan where the government resorted to blocking access to Facebook, Youtube, Flickr and parts of Wikipedia in an effort to ‘protect’ its citizens from the heinous sight of several thousand photoshopped stick-men with word ‘Mohammed’ scrawled underneath. Continue reading ‘“Everybody Research the Holocaust Day”’
I’m just back from seeing Bruno Dumont’s Hadewijch and a very interesting film it is too. The reason that I mention it here is that in his review of it Luciano Monteagudo, one of the nation’s best known film critics, describes the character Nassir as being a Palestinian immigrant when there isn’t a scrap of evidence in the picture to suggest he’s anything other than an Algerian, or perhaps the son of Algerians.
Last month, I moderated a panel at AJC’s 2010 Annual Meeting on the subject of Islam in Europe, featuring Paul Berman and Christopher Caldwell, two writers whose work is well-known to Z Word’s audience, and German diplomat Heidrun Tempel. Here’s a video of our discussion (it starts a few seconds after you hit the ‘play’ button, so hang in there.)
The recent draconian legislation in Arizona aimed at cracking down on illegal immigrants has generated a firestorm of debate in the United States. While some criticism of the law - most obviously that of President Barack Obama - has been measured, others out there have been all too keen to reach for the nearest outrageous analogy. China and the Soviet Union have been invoked by some American activists, whose rhetoric enabled the Cuban regime to take a break from locking up dissidents in order to gleefuly denounce a “racist and xenophobic” law.
Inevitably in this atmosphere, Nazi Germany has been held up as a comparison too. Earlier this afternoon, NPR gave me the opportunity to explain why this is such a grotesque use of history. The same point was forcefully made by Clarissa Martinez of the National Council of La Raza, who appeared alongside me, and who proved that principled opposition to the Arizona law is possible without sinking into the depths of the Nazi analogy. Do listen here; scroll down to the item in the right-hand menu entitled “Connection Between Arizona and Nazi Germany Fair?”
Michael Mansfield is a renowned British criminal lawyer and in an open letter to Nick Clegg, Britain’s new Deputy Prime Minister, in today’s Guardian he writes,
