Israel faces worldwide condemnation after its commandos stormed an international aid convoy heading for Gaza, resulting in up to 19 deaths (according to reports).
The Turkish ship (the Mavi Marmara, heading a flotilla of six ships) was boarded in the early hours of the morning by Israeli commandos dressed in black and armed with rifles. They lowered themselves onto the ship with ropes from helicopters.
According to Israeli officials, the commandos opened fire after activists attacked them with iron bars, axes and knives. There is also a report (unconfirmed) that one of the crew of the Mavi Marmara took one of the rifles from a commando during the raid.
Whatever the real circumstances, it is clear that once again Israel has used excessive force in handling situations of this nature. Was it really necessary to board the ship with armed commandos, and if a rifle was taken, did the Israeli commandos really need to kill so many people to overpower one armed man?
Even though it was Israel that ordered the raid on the flotilla and their commandos that created the violent confrontation, they (Israel) have made every attempt to place the blame on the members of the flotilla and anyone else that suits them.
However, according to a reporter on the ship, the Israeli commandos began firing before landing on the vessel. The flotilla was carrying citizens from Britain, Greece, Sweden and Ireland.
As the flotilla was 80 miles from Gaza at the time of the attack, and in international waters, there is also a question of whether Israel had any legal right to carry out such action (regardless of the other circumstances).
Needless to say, Israel's actions have provided support for Palestine and Hamas, and there are calls for an urgent investigation into the incident by the international community.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the attack "inhuman" and said it brought Tehran's arch-foe "closer than ever to its end."
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This incident closely follows Israel's refusal to put its nuclear facilities under UN safeguards, in an attempt to make the Middle East a nuclear free (or safe) zone. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it singled out Israel while letting Iran off the hook.
Discussions about Israel's nuclear weapons (several hundred) have always been conveniently ignored by world leaders (especially those in the US and Britain), yet sanctions are being applied to Iran who have none (at this moment in time). It is hardly fair to insist that Iran should allow inspections of its nuclear facilities, when Israel does not.
The time has come to stop treating Israel as some exception to international laws and to punish them in the same way we would any other country when they do wrong. Unfortunately, due to Israel's world famous propaganda machine, there are many who write sympathetic articles that cover-up their actions and accuse those who criticize them of being anti-Semitic. These sort of tactics are appalling and wrong, there is no excuse for such violence (no matter who does it).
Despite their "talk" of peace, Israel is not only destroying any chance of a settlement in the Middle East, they are also endangering world stability. This MUST stop, or as they are often fond of saying "Enough already!"
Ian Brockwell writes straight talking, honest stories that engage readers. Contact Ian through NewsBlaze.
Editor's Note: These two videos were released by Israel and show initial aggression from those on the ship. NewsBlaze will try to get the complete audio and video, because there is a large part of the story missing. What happened before and what happened afterwards?
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