Israeli navy boards activist ship "Estelle"en route to Gaza

Finnish ship SV Estelle is seen during an operation off the southern Greek island of Gavdos, south of Crete (AFP Photo / STR)

Source: Russia Today

Israel’s defense forces have boarded a ship attempting to break through the Gaza blockade in “a peaceful operation.” The vessel was carrying Palestinian activists, parliamentarians and humanitarian cargo, said a mission spokesperson.

­Israeli naval boats surrounded the SV Estelle’ 38 nautical miles from Gaza while it was still in international waters.

A spokesperson from the Israeli Department of Defense said that they were forced to intervene after the vessel ignored numerous warnings to change course and cooperate with the Israeli authorities.

"After the passengers ignored calls to change course, the decision was made to board the vessel and lead it to the port of Ashdod,” said the spokesperson, adding that no one was injured when the marines seized control of the ship.

The organizers of the activist mission to Gaza announced over the radio that their vessel had come under attack shortly after it was approached by Israeli ships.

The activists are being transferred to Ashdod port where they will be handed over to police custody and then on to the immigration authorities. Previously, activists caught trying to break through the blockade have been deported from Israel immediately.

The Finnish vessel was reportedly carrying 41 tonnes of cement, books, toys, medical equipment and two olive trees.

A senior Defense Ministry official said that Israel was well within its rights to “operate at sea to prevent the smuggling of arms to terror organizations," reported Ynet. He denounced the activists as "provocateurs who are drive by hatred for Israel" and dismissed the “humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” maintaining “more than 1,500 trucks carrying tons of goods enter Gaza each week through the land crossings.”

In 2010, Israeli forces boarded a Turkish ship attempting to force its way through the blockade. Soldiers killed nine activists, sparking international outcry and condemnation from the UN for use of “excessive force.”

The UN has called for the six-year blockade on Gaza to be lifted on numerous occasions on the grounds that it represents “a denial of basic human rights in contravention of international law.”

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Gaza bound ship attacked by Israel forces

Source: Al Jazeera

A ship carrying pro-Palestinian activists seeking to breach Israel's naval blockade on Gaza has "come under attack"
shortly after being approached by Israeli vessels, a spokeswoman said.

"The Estelle is now under attack - I have just had a message from them by phone," Victoria Strand, a Stockholm-based spokeswoman for the Ship to Gaza Sweden campaign told the AFP news agency on Saturday.

According to Dror Feiler, another spokesperson, the Estelle, whose passengers include five parliamentarians and a former Canadian politician, was attacked at around 08:15 GMT.

"Five or six military vessels surrounded the Estelle. Soldiers wearing masks are now trying to board the ship. The attack took place on international water: N31 26 E33 45," Feiler said.

The Israeli military confirmed that navy vessels were in the vicinity of the Estelle but denied the ship had been attacked or boarded.

"The Israeli navy has attempted to make initial contact with them, but they have not answered and nothing further has happened at this stage," a spokeswoman said.

Asked whether any attempt had been made to stop or board the Estelle, she said: "Not at the moment."

The Estelle, the latest ship to try to break Israel's blockade on Gaza as part of the 'Freedom Flotilla' movement, set sail from Naples in southern Italy.

Luigi de Magistris, the mayor of Naples, met with members of the crew during a visit to the Estelle in the city's port.

The Estelle, whose voyage is being organised by an international pro-Palestinian coalition, is carrying humanitarian goods to the Gaza Strip.

There are 17 activists from around the world on board, including passengers and crew from Canada, Israel, Norway, Sweden and the US.

Israeli regime calls on UN to act against Gaza-bound ship

 

A man raises the Palestinian flag at the port of Gaza City on October 7, 2012.

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/10/17/267146/israel-asks-un-to-stop-gazabound-ship/

The Israeli regime has called on the United Nations to act against a Swedish ship attempting to break the blockade of the Gaza Strip.

“I call on the Secretary General, the Security Council, and all responsible members of the international community to take immediate action to end this provocation,” Israeli envoy to the UN Ron Prosor said in a recent letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, and the security council’s president for October, Guatemalan envoy Gert Rosenthal.

The Swedish vessel Estelle is transporting 17 activists and a cargo of humanitarian aid for the Palestinians. The ship left the Italian port city of Naples on October 6 and is expected to arrive near Gaza in about a week.

Prosor also stated that Tel Aviv remained “determined to enforce its naval blockade of the Gaza Strip” and that it will take any action to stop the vessel.

On May 31, 2010, Israeli forces attacked the Gaza-bound humanitarian Freedom Flotilla in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea, killing nine Turkish nationals aboard Turkey’s Mavi Marmara and injuring about 50 other activists who were part of the six-ship convoy.

Also in November 2011, a Canadian and an Irish yacht were prevented by Israeli forces in international waters to transport pro-Palestinian activists and medical supplies to Gaza.

The Tel Aviv regime denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.