Israel deploys navy to stop aid ships

An Israeli military vessel, file photo

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=135902&sectionid=351020202

Israel has urged Lebanon to stop a Gaza-bound aid convoy, saying it will use "all necessary means" to stop the humanitarian convoy from reaching the blockaded coastal sliver.

The Israeli navy has deployed ships at sea to stop the Lebanese vessels and commandos from the navy's Flotilla 13 — known as the Shayetet — are put on standby so that in case it becomes necessary they would board the ships to prevent them from sailing into the Gaza Strip, The Jerusalem Post reported on Friday.

Two Lebanese vessels are expected to depart in an attempt to break the Gaza blockade and deliver humanitarian supplies to Gazans by the end of the week.

Meanwhile, Israel's Ambassador to the UN Gabriela Shalev once again threatened the new convoy in a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday.

Tel Aviv will "use all necessary means" to prevent the ships preparing to sail from Lebanon to reach Gaza, Shalev said.

Thursday's letter was the second warning after Shalev last month wrote another similar letter to the United Nations.

The new threats came as a group of female Lebanese activists announced a plan to send aid ships to Gaza, which has been under siege since 2007. Some 50 Lebanese and foreign activists would be aboard, according to the organizers.

The new aid convoy planned the mission after Israeli commandos on May 31 stormed the Gaza Freedom Flotilla aid convoy, killing nine civilian activists and injuring dozens of others.

In the latest challenge to the crippling blockade, Israeli missile ships blocked a Libyan aid ship from steaming to Gaza on July 14.
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Israel's Impunity to Ignite Violence



The Palestinian Authority's ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=135912&sectionid=351020202

The Palestinian Authority has warned that Israel's infringement of Palestinian rights will fuel violence, calling on the UN to hold Tel Aviv accountable for its acts.

In a UN Security Council meeting held on Wednesday, the Palestinian Authority's Ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, addressed the 15-member council, Press TV correspondent reported.

"The alternative is to allow tensions to continue rising, igniting another cycle of violence that will further harm the possibility for a peaceful resolution of the conflict and cause more suffering, insecurity, and instability," Mansour said.

He also criticized Israel's "ongoing aggression, colonization, and provocation," as the Tel Aviv regime continues expansion of settlements and destruction of Palestinian homes.

Israel continues to demolish Palestinian homes in East al-Quds (Jerusalem), forcing the residents out of the area.

Mansour also stressed that Israel's impunity continues to trample on efforts to shore up the political will required to take bold measures needed to promote resumption of a credible and fair peace process and advance the cause of international peace and security which this conflict unquestionably directly harms.

He also reiterated the call for an independent international investigation into Israel's May 31 brutal attack against an aid convoy in international waters, which left nine activists dead.