Aid ship unloaded at Egypt port

The Amalthea brought 2,000 tonnes of food and medicine to the blockaded Gaza Strip [Reuters]


Source: Al Jazeera
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/07/20107164441491352.html

Humanitarian cargo bound for the Gaza Strip has been unloaded from a Libyan-chartered ship in Egypt after the Israeli navy prevented the vessel from sailing to the Palestinian territory.

The Moldovan-flagged Amalthea, loaded with 2,000 tonnes of medical supplies and food, docked at the port of El Arish, on Egypt's Mediterranean coast, about 45km south of the border with Gaza, on Wednesday.

Gamal Abdel Maqsoud, director of the port, said that Egypt's Red Crescent Society would deliver the aid to Gaza by land across the Egyptian border.

"Medical supplies and passengers will enter Gaza through the Rafah border [crossing], while food will enter through the Awja border," Maqsoud said.

Yousseuf Sawani, executive director of the Gaddafi Foundation which chartered the vessel, said that eight Israeli warships had surrounded the Libyan aid ship, preventing it from continuing its journey to Gaza.

"It was unacceptable for us to enter into a confrontation and risk bloodshed," Sawani said.

"The aims of Amalthea have been achieved without bloodshed and the result is gains for the Palestinians."

The charity is headed by the son of Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, and carried supporters who were "keen on expressing solidarity with the Palestinian people in the plight amidst the siege imposed on Gaza".

Egyptian blockade

A separate attempt by Jordanian activists and trade unionists to deliver aid and medical supplies to Gaza was blocked on Thursday by Egyptian authorities - the second incident in less than a month.

A convoy of 150 people, including "unionists, journalists and academics", travelled overland in 25 vehicles from Jordan to the Egyptian Rafah crossing.

We are shocked that Egypt prevents us from delivering aid and medical supplies to Gaza," Ahmad Armuti, president of a trade unions' council, said.

"We regret, reject and condemn Egypt's unacceptable position, not only towards our brave people of Gaza, but also towards all Jordanians."

Armuti called on the Jordanian government to demand clarification from Egypt, which "should be pressed to change its position".

"This will not stop the Jordanian trade unions from working hard to break the unjust blockade and resisting any form of normalisation with the Zionist entity," he said.

Gaza restrictions

Late last month, Egypt banned several Jordanian trade unionists from Gaza through Rafah, Gaza's only crossing to bypass Israel, saying they had failed to give prior notice of their arrival.

Egypt had kept Rafah largely closed since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007, but Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, ordered it open after a deadly Israeli naval raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla on May 31.

Nine pro-Palestinian activists - eight Turks and a dual US-Turkish citizen - were killed after Israeli soldiers boarded the lead ship Mavi Marmara.

Following an international outcry over the raid, Israel eased restrictions on the Gaza Strip, allowing some previously banned items into the territory.

But construction materials remain heavily restricted, Gazans have very limited freedom of movement, and Israel still enforces a naval blockade on the territory.

Israel renews threats against aid ships

Turkish-flagged ship Mavi Marmara


Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=134843§ionid=351020202


Israel says it will keep attacking aid ships heading for the Gaza Strip as the humanitarian situation in the besieged coastal sliver continues to deteriorate.

"No ship can breach this blockade, be it civil or military ship," Israeli envoy Sari Rubenstein told a hearing of the UN Human Rights Committee on Wednesday, describing the siege as "legitimate."

"Whoever violates the blockade is heading for retaliation," Rubenstein threatened.

The two-day hearing was to see if Israel was fulfilling its obligations under the UN treaty on civil and political rights in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Israel came under intense pressure after its navy commandos stormed the Turkish-flagged ship Mavi Marmara, a part of the 6-ship Gaza Freedom Flotilla, in international waters on May 31, killing nine Turkish activists and injuring dozens of others onboard the civilian ship.

The brutal attack sent shockwaves across the world and raised global calls for an international investigation into the incident and an immediate end to the years-long blockade of Gaza.

Israel defended the attack as an act of "self-defense" against the resistance its forces faced during the takeover of the ship.

The activists on the aid ship, however, strongly reject the claim, charging Israeli commandos with boarding the ship with blazing guns and deliberately shooting people to death.

Gaza aid ship docks in Egypt

The Amalthea was bringing 2,000 tonnes of food
and medicine to the blockaded Gaza Strip [Reuters]


Source: Al Jazeera
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/07/201071419010766579.html

A Libyan aid ship originally bound for the Gaza Strip has been diverted to a port in Egypt after the Israeli navy warned the vessel against trying to break an Israeli blockade on the Palestinian coastal territory.

An Egyptian official said the Amalthea arrived in El Arish, on Egypt's Mediterranean coast, about 45km south of the border with Gaza, in mid-evening on Wednesday.

"Medical supplies and passengers will enter Gaza through the Rafah border [crossing], while food will enter through the Awja border," Captain Gamal Abdel Maqsoud, who is in charge of the port, said.

He said Egypt's Red Crescent would be responsible for taking the 2,000 tonnes of food and medicine over both borders and had lorries waiting in El Arish.

Yousseuf Sawani, executive director of the Gaddafi Foundation which charteredthe vessel, confirmed earlier that it had decided to divert the ship away from Gaza for safety reasons.

"It was unacceptable for us to enter into a confrontation and risk bloodshed," Sawani said.

"The aims of Amalthea have been achieved without bloodshed and the result is gains for the Palestinians."

He said earlier on Wednesday that eight Israeli warships had surrounded the Libyan aid ship, preventing it from continuing its journey to Gaza.

Request accepted

Amr el-Kahky, Al Jazeera's correspondent in El Arish, said the Egyptian foreign ministry had officially accepted a request from the ship to dock in El Arish.

"Offloading of the ship and loading [the supplies] onto trucks to travel to Gaza is due to take place tomorrow [Thursday]," he said.

The Amalthea is carrying 12 crew members and at least nine passengers, including six Libyans and one each from Algeria, Morocco and Nigeria.

A separate attempt to deliver aid relief and medical supplies to Gaza is also currently under way.

A convoy of 150 people, including "unionists, journalists and academics", is travelling overland in 25 vehicles from Jordan to the Egyptian Rafah crossing.

These challenges to the blockade come a day after Israel's military admitted mistakes in the May 31 attack on a flotilla of aid vessels trying to breach the blockade.

Nine pro-Palestinian activists, eight Turks and a dual US-Turkish citizen, were killed after Israeli soldiers boarded the lead ship Mavi Marmara.

Following an international outcry over the raid, Israel recently eased restrictions on the Gaza Strip, allowing some previously banned items into the territory.

But construction materials remain heavily restricted, Gazans have very limited freedom of movement, and Israel still enforces a naval blockade on the territory.

Libyan aid mission heading for Gaza

A file photo of the Libyan-organized aid vessel Amalthea


Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=134715§ionid=351020202


A Libyan Gaza-bound aid vessel stalled by Israeli navy has resumed its voyage as its organizers deny reports that the ship has shifted its course toward Egypt.

The Moldovan-flagged ship Amalthea carrying 2,000 tons of food aid and medicine to the long-besieged Gaza Strip briefly stopped moving on Wednesday as Israeli gunboats blocked its way.

An Egyptian official said the ship had been diverted to the Egyptian port of al-Arish amid Israeli threats to intercept any aid ship trying to break its years-long siege on Gaza.

"The ship has resumed its journey but the going is difficult," Yussef Sawan, head of the Tripoli-based Gaddafi Foundation, told AFP.

"Israeli naval boats are trying to block its course and divert it from the Gaza coast," he said, adding that the boat was "about three hours from Gaza."

Sawan earlier reported a malfunction in the vessel's engine but blamed the cargo ship's stop on the Israeli navy boats surrounding it.

"Eight Israeli warships are surrounding the Libyan aid ship for Gaza and preventing the continuation of its journey," he said, adding the warships were "threatening" the Amalthea which he said was still pushing it ways toward Gaza.

Sawan dismissed the Egyptian claim that the aid ship was due to arrive in al-Arish port. "The ship is still headed for Gaza and will not change course," he stressed.

The aid mission comes less than two months after Israeli navy commandos attacked the Turkish-organized Gaza Freedom Flotilla on May 31 as the six-vessel civilian fleet was heading for the blockaded Palestinian territory in international waters.

The attack left nine Turkish nationals, including a Turkish-American teenager, killed and wounded some 50 others.

The lethal incident sparked a global outcry against Israel's use of violent force against the civilian convoy and drew mounting calls for an end to Tel Aviv's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Confusion over Gaza aid ship route

The Al Amal is carrying 2,000 tonnes of supplies intended for the people of Gaza [Reuters]

Source: Al Jazeera
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/07/201071403749122168.html

A Libyan aid ship originally bound for the Gaza Strip has been diverted to a port in Egypt after the Israeli navy warned the vessel against trying to break an Israeli blockade on the Palestinian coastal territory.

Israeli warships were shadowing the Moldovan-flagged Al Amal, carrying 2,000 tonnes of food and medicine, to its diverted destination of El-Arish port on the Egyptian Sinai coast.

"Eight Israeli warships are surrounding the Libyan aid ship for Gaza and preventing the continuation of its journey," Yousseuf Sawani, the executive director of the Gaddafi Foundation which charteredthe vessel, said early on Wednesday.

Sawani said earlier that the Israeli warships were "threatening" the cargo ship which he said was still headed for Gaza. But he made it clear that those on board would not violently resist any efforts to stop them.

"First and foremost, we want to arrive to Gaza. If this is impossible, we don't want to subject anyone to danger," he told Al Jazeera.

Communications jammed

Sawani said that communications with the boat had been jammed and the vessel was moving at a slow pace because of the Israeli warships that were trailing it.

An Egyptian official confirmed that the ship sought and received permissionto sail to El-Arish, where authorities would unload its humanitarian aid cargo and transfer it by land to Gaza.

But he said that there was "no co-ordination at the moment with the ship and we do not know where its final destination is".

An Israeli official hinted at possible disputes between the chartered crew and passengers over the destination.

"It's far from clear that there is agreement about where the ship is headed," said the official, who had been briefed on the navy's radio exchanges with the Amalthea [Al Amal] since contact was made with it some 160km from Gaza Strip's shores.

Just before midnight, the ship's crew said they were stuck because of engine trouble.

In a recording played on Israel radio, a crew member said he did not know how long it would take to repair the main engine and resume the journey.

Al Amal was still around 90km from land but is not expected to dock for another day. It is carrying 12 crew members and at least nine passengers, including six Libyans and one each from Algeria, Morocco and Nigeria.

Overland convoy

A separate attempt to deliver aid relief and medical supplies to Gaza is also currently under way.

A convoy of 150 people, including "unionists, journalists and academics", is travelling overland in 25 vehicles from Jordan to the Egyptian Rafah crossing.

These challenges to the blockade come a day after Israel's military admitted mistakes in the May 31 attack on a flotilla of aid vessels trying to breach the blockade.

Nine pro-Palestinian activists, eight Turks and a dual US-Turkish citizen, were killed after Israeli soldiers boarded the lead ship.

Following an international outcry over the raid, Israel recently eased restrictions on the Gaza Strip, allowing some previously banned items into the territory.

But construction materials remain heavily restricted, Gazans have very limited freedom of movement, and Israel still enforces a naval blockade of the territory.

Israel set to repeat May 31 aid attack?

The Moldova-flagged cargo ship, Amalthea


Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=134529§ionid=351020202


Israel is preparing to use force against a new Gaza aid ship amid seething protests over its May 31 attack on a civilian convoy bound for the blockaded territory.

The Moldovan-flagged aid vessel Amalthea organized by Libya's Gaddafi International Charity and Development Association has already set sail from the Greek port of Lavrio and is expected to get near Gaza shore Tuesday night.

Israel's Ha'aretz newspaper quoted military sources in a Tuesday report on it website as saying that Israeli navy commandoes were preparing for a forceful interception of the vessel.

The report comes a day after The Jerusalem Post cited Israeli defense ministry sources as saying that Israel had put its navy on high alert in case it should order them to board Amalthea

Tel Aviv has said allowing the ship to enter Gaza will have serious consequences for what it calls Israel's security, and threatened to strike the civilian aid vessel.

The remarks are seen as a slap in the face of the global community which has as yet failed to push an international probe into Israel's lethal attack on the Gaza freedom Flotilla in international waters and the death of nine Turkish civilians onboard the aid fleet.

In the face of Israeli threats and obstructions, the Libyan charity on Monday said its civilian aid convoy was undeterred and determined to break Tel Aviv's siege of Gaza.

"The foundation's team on the vessel has said morale on board is high and that they are preparing to enter Gaza on Wednesday," the Tripoli-based association said on its website on Monday.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak earlier branded the humanitarian bid as “unnecessary provocation,” and urged the organizers to "either let the ship be escorted by navy vessels to Ashdod port (in Israel) or that is sails directly to the port of al-Arish" in Egypt near the border with Gaza.

"We only have food, medicine and young pacifists on the boat," said Mashallah Zwei, a representative for the Libyan charity who is accompanying the mission.

"The Israelis can inspect the ship and if they have an ounce of humanity they will let us unload in Gaza," he said, calling for international pressure on the regime not to disrupt the relief bid.

Zwei had also earlier clarified that the organization was not seeking "a confrontation or a provocation."

Israel navy on alert over Libyan ship

A file photo shows four small boats carrying Israeli navy commandos as they speed into the military port of Ashdod in southern Israel

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=134380§ionid=351020202


Israeli navy is on high alert as a Libyan aid ship heads for the Gaza Strip to break Israel's naval blockade on the impoverished coastal sliver.

The navy is tracking the ship and has put forces on standby in case it needs to board the vessel, The Jerusalem Post cited Israeli defense ministry sources as saying.

The navy will make contact with the ship while it is still far from Gaza, likely in international waters, and ask it to follow naval vessels into Israeli port of Ashdod, the sources said.

They also noted that Israel has prepared plans to attack the vessel if it refuses or does not agree to sail to Egypt.

Tel Aviv says allowing the ship to go ahead with its mission will have serious consequences for "Israel's security," vowing to prevent any seaborne aid fleet from breaking its siege of Gaza.

The Moldovan-flagged cargo ship, the Amalthea, organized by the Tripoli-based Gaddafi International Charity and Development Association, has already set sail from the Greek port of Lavrio and plans to sail directly for Gaza with some 2,000 tons of rice, sugar and corn oil.

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman told Army Radio on Sunday that "no ship of any kind will be allowed to arrive at Gaza," and that aid cargos for Gaza could instead go to the Egyptian port of al-Arish or Ashdod.

In addition to 15 volunteers — including 13 Libyans, one Nigerian and one Moroccan national — the ship has a crew of 12 from Cuba, Haiti, India and Syria.

The Israeli navy sparked global outrage late in May, after its commandos launched a deadly onslaught on a humanitarian aid convoy bound for the besieged Palestinian territory while it was in international waters.

Backed by the US, Israel has so far managed to escape from an international inquiry into the lethal attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla which killed nine activists onboard the civilian convoy and injured some 50 others.

Israel warns Gaza-bound Libyan aid ship

A charity headed by the second son of Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi is sending the aid ship, Amalthea, from Greece to Gaza to break the Israeli siege.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=134257§ionid=351020202



Israel has issued a warning against a Libyan aid ship en route to the Gaza Strip as part of its bid to hinder pro-Palestinian relief efforts.

Tel Aviv says allowing the ship to go ahead with its mission will have serious consequences for "Israel's security," adding that it will stop the Libyan aid vessel from entering the impoverished enclave.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said on Sunday that the move is “an unnecessary provocation,” AFP quoted him as saying.

The Moldova-flagged cargo ship, the Amalthea, organized by the Tripoli-based Gaddafi International Charity and Development Association, was scheduled to depart from Greece to break the Israeli siege of Gaza.

The vessel has already set sail from the Greek port of Lavrio and is now moving toward the coastal strip.

Tel Aviv insists that the supplies be transferred to the Gaza Strip through the Israeli port of Ashdod.

Earlier, the Israeli government claimed to have blocked an attempt by Libya to deliver aid to the besieged residents of the Gaza Strip.

The aid ship is carrying 12 crewmembers and 2,000 tons of foodstuffs and medical supplies, including sacks of rice, sugar, corn oil and olive paste.

Efforts by Israel to prevent the aid ship from reaching Gaza comes after Israeli commandos assaulted the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla aid convoy on May 31, killing nine Turkish nationals onboard.

The fatal attack drew global condemnation and raised calls for an international inquiry into the episode.

Libyan aid convoy to break Gaza siege

The charity is headed by Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi, the second son of the Libyan leader.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=134077§ionid=351020202



One month after Israel's deadly attack on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, a Libya-based charity group is sending another humanitarian convoy to the impoverished enclave to break the Israeli siege.

The Tripoli-based Gaddafi International Charity and Development Association will send the aid ship to Gaza from Greece.

The Moldova-flagged cargo ship Amalthea is set to leave Lavrio, around 60km (40 miles) south of Athens, on Friday, said the charity, headed by Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi, son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

The ship carries 2,000 tons of food and medical supplies including sacks of rice and sugar, corn oil and olive paste.

The Gaddafi Association added that the ship would also be carrying "a number of supporters who are keen on expressing solidarity with the Palestinian people in the plight amidst the siege imposed on Gaza."

"I am scared, but our lives are in God's hands. Our job is to help anyone who needs it. We don't care if they are Catholics or Muslims or whatever. Now we are helping the people of Gaza who are suffering", AP quoted head volunteer Adburaufel Jaziri as saying.

Israeli officials have not commented on the Libyan ship yet.

Israeli commandos stormed the Turkish-flagged Gaza Freedom Flotilla on May 31, killing at least nine civilian activists and injuring dozens of others in international waters.

The fatal attack sent shockwaves across the world and raised global calls for an international investigation into the incident.

Following worldwide condemnation, Israel announced it has eased its three-year land blockade on the coastal region. However, the move is widely believed to be an attempt to reduce global pressure on Tel Aviv, with Palestinians saying the situation in the Gaza Strip has not been improved.