Israeli forces storm Gaza aid flotilla; 16 dead‎

[Elano]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/1OTLoxIZEGc" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/1OTLoxIZEGc</a>
Up to 16 people have been killed as Israeli naval commandos boarded aid ships bound for the Gaza Strip on May 30. The six-ship aid convoy led by a Turkish vessel with 600 people on board set sail for Gaza from waters off Cyprus the previous day in defiance of Israel's blockade of the territory. Footage from the flotilla's lead vessel, the Mavi Marmara, shows armed Israeli troops boarding the ship and helicopters flying overhead. The BBC reports that the incident took place in international waters.

Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal, on board the Mavi Marmara, said Israeli troops had used live ammunition during the operation. Israeli Army Radio said soldiers opened fire "after confronting those on board carrying sharp objects." However, the Free Gaza Movement, organizers of the flotilla, said the troops opened fire as soon as they boarded the ships. They also said the ships were now being towed to the Israeli town of Haifa.

An Israeli religious medical service, ZAKA, said seven people have been admitted to hospital in Haifa, Israel's main naval base, one of them in a serious condition. Vice premier Silvan Shalom told Israel Radio that Israeli forces will soon issue a report. Israeli officials said overnight the navy told the activists by radio to turn back toward Cyprus or head for the Israeli port of Ashdod to unload the 10,000 tons of aid, which Israel would then transfer to the Gaza Strip.

The hundreds of activists on board the flotilla include a Nobel laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire from Northern Ireland, several European legislators, and a large delegation of Turkish activists. Turkey had urged Israel to allow the convoy safe passage. Israel said it would prevent the convoy from reaching Gaza.

Thousands of Turkish protesters tried to storm the Israeli consulate in Istanbul as the news of the incident broke. The protesters shouted "Damn Israel" as police blocked them. Turkey is also reported to have summoned the Israeli ambassador to lodge a protest.

[Elano]

No provokation of any kind justifies this kind of violence.It was the most well equipped and trained army in the world against civilians with iron bars.They could restrain them easily but they wanted to kill...
If any other country had done such an act the whole world would come upon it.
We've seen American go to war for less.
Who are you to kill turkish people and capture greeks on international waters?

[Jaydc]

Fuck the middle east,the world would be a better place if just said fuck it and nuked all those countries.

[virtuoso]

Fuck the middle east,the world would be a better place if just said fuck it and nuked all those countries.

This place wouldn't be quite the same without such moronic comments

Anyways going back to the article, they attacked supposedly because they were fired at, which who knows, if that's true, but it's not like the Israelis aren't immune to lying. One thing seems for sure if they were indeed fired on, Israeli's military response is to deliver indiscriminate punishment and death which seems to be what happened here. However more central is the fact that Gaza has nothing to do with Israel, they stole that and continue to marshall it, they intercepted the ship because they the occupiers would not allow the aid to be shipped in because it "delegitimises Israel" they have no legitimacy there in the first place, what a sick joke. Notice to this was simply a supply ship intending to deliver much needed aid and yet they are the ones being painted as the evil ones, how dare they want to deliver aid!

[50]

Fuck the middle east,the world would be a better place if just said fuck it and nuked all those countries.

sad but true

[virtuoso]

!

i can't be bothered to embed it but you can see from the video shot, they were surrounded from all sides, the israelis were shooting from their boats and numerous rounds were discharged against basically an unarmed group of civilians.

Their excuse for the slain, it's actually worse than I thought it would be...

Israel's military said protesters managed to grab two guns from Israeli soldiers and use them against the commandos, prompting soldiers to return fire.

[jeromechickenbone]

Yeah I'm real sure that Israel was attacked first

Several countries have engaged Israel demanding to know if some of their citizens on the float are ok. 

The way this was hyped in the media, you knew something was gonna go down.  They were obviously conditioning the masses for some kind of attack.

I'm really tired of the Zionist bullshit. 

[ikke]

I found it funny when they said "the activists engaged attack first when we entered their ship"

[westsiderider323]

Fuck the middle east,the world would be a better place if just said fuck it and nuked all those countries.

this

[50]

i just saw the videos.. jews are right this time

[7even]

The IDF has always been like that. Israel can do whatever it wants. In January they assassinated someone in Dubai and there was devastating proof for it, yet noone did shit to them. They are immune to law virtually.

[virtuoso]

Exactly however these are some more thoughts of mine

1) They engaged them in the most public way possible, so it seems like they are attempting to once again make this is a spectacle to distract from any peace talks
2) They said and I quote we will deliver this aid ourselves, which only serves to underline that currently they are making the palestinians live at a subsistence level but due to the media spotlight it's a little PR exercise for them.
3) In the video, there are numerous rounds being fired, these people are trained to deal with such incidents
4) These people have every right to defend themselves and what happened to them, seizing their ship and the aid, not to mention the violence, is piracy
5) They claim that onboard were axes and knives lol, they must seriously expect whoever reads or hears this to be retarded of course there were, typical items found on a fleet of boats!
6) This does publicise what is going on in Gaza
7) This has nothing to do with arms going to Gaza, they could have checked the vessels before they left, indeed even shadowed them, but instead they chose the violent, threatening, altercation with them.
There is talk about Islamic extremism and yet most of the contingent were turkish, as well as some european passengers on board, these were not hardcore islamists.
9) Israel's regime only sinks itself lower and lower

[LyRiCaL_G]

Israel have attacked aid services before, its nothng new and its shocking and sickening stuff. Anyone defending this is a retard. I'm sure those who are jewish in here...virtuoso im guessing and a few more MAY try and defend it if possible etc, but this is just inhumane bullshit. But hey they're jewish, so they're allowed. Its never an act of terrorism when its done by certain people and against certain people. ;-)

[virtuoso]

Defend it? I am not jewish and even if i was, I wouldn't defend it, where have I ever defended this?

[theremedy360]

Fuck Israel.