From: Portside Moderator mailto: moderator@PORTSIDE.ORG
Sent: Thursday, July 07, 2011 6:33 PM
In' to
1. July 6th Update from the
2. Activists conducting 'fly in' to
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July 6th Update from the
July 6, 2011
http://ustogaza.org/latest/july-6th-update-from-the-u-s-boat-to-gaza/
The presence of the U.S. Boat to
as the enforcer of Israeli's naval blockade of
But the creative and determined spirit of this team of committed activists could not be stopped or silenced. They worked tirelessly to make the point in countless ways: they attempted to set sail knowing it might lead to a confrontation with the Greek authorities, they stood by the boat's captain when he was arrested and jailed for several days, several people held a hunger
strike for a few days, everyone marched and rallied with other flotilla activists and with the people of Athens in their own struggle for economic justice, and incredible energy went into getting the word out to people throughout this country and around the world as the work with the media continued through it all.
Last night our group's activities in Athens ended and here's a description from one of our people there: "We all went to Syntagma Square which looks much like Tahrir where there is an encampment and thousands of people gather each night. On Sundays there may be upwards of 50,000 and on big nights hundreds of thousands. We unfurled to drum beats 22 flags sewn together representing the countries participating in the Flotilla. Our black and white signs were in Greek, Arabic and English. It was a beautiful sight. Then we marched to the Spanish Embassy where our Spanish
partners were occupying its embassy demanding the release of their boat. We arrived at about 9 pm with drummers leading the way. They came out on balconies and we sang to each other. It was quite the sight."
Now our folks are beginning the journey home - some will arrive today, some tomorrow and others in the days ahead. Everyone is tired, but their energy is strong! They will share their stories and talk about their experiences in communities everywhere. And they will use this incredible time they shared in
As soon as we can, we will send more information about the next steps and how you all can stay involved in the work to end the Israeli naval blockade and lift the siege of
Below is a quick overview of several items related to our presence in
peace,
Leslie Cagan
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JULY 6, 2011 OVERVIEW
1) Captain Released Our boat's captain - John Klusmire - had a hearing on Tuesday in a Greek court. He was released from jail, where he had been since Saturday morning, and was told he had no restrictions or limitations on his movements or activities. The charges against him were not dropped but we are hopeful that eventually they will be. Thanks everyone for all of the calls and email messages you sent to Greek and
2) Hunger Strike Over The 9 passengers who were on a hunger strike in support of our captain ended their fast. On Sunday they had been detained by the
let go a few hours later. Everyone was fine and since then no one has been held by the police.
3) Our Boat The Audacity of Hope remains in the hands of Greek authorities and we do not yet know when they will release it. Several of our people are staying in
4) Information on Some of the Other Boats - Please note that the situation for each boat has been constantly changing so it's possible that some of this information could already be put of date. We will try to get an update on the boats on our website as soon as possible.
a) On 7/5, the Greek Boat to
solidarity was MP Panagiotis Kouroublis, who had recently been expelled from the ruling PASOK Party for voting against the IMF austerity plan. He was given a standing ovation when he entered the hall.
b) The owners and crew of the Greek/Swedish/Norwegian passenger boat Juliano went on board in the
of the Fokia mayor, honoring the passengers and crew. However, the port authorities prevented the
boat from leaving, without citing any justification. In the meantime, two rented boats filled with journalists and supporters gathered at the port to cover the action and to demand release of the boat, and have been confronted by port police. At latest report, the standoff continues, and a crowd of people is gathering at the Perama Port Authority to demand the release of the boat.
c) Passengers of the Spanish boat
d) Canadian citizen Sandra Ruch remains in custody in the port city of
authorities by placing themselves in kayaks in front of police boats attempting to stop the Canadian boat, Tahrir from leaving Greek waters. They have been charged with interfering with law enforcement.
e) The other French passenger boat Karameh is again at sea in international waters, awaiting the other boats in the Flotilla. After leaving
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http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2011/07/201175145243628145.html
| Activists conducting 'fly in' to |
| |
| Despite threats from Israeli security, hundreds of Palestinian solidarity activists plan to fly into Tel Aviv's airport. |
| By Dar Jamail Al-Jazeera: July 06, 2011 |
This Friday, July 8, hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists are planning to fly to Tel Aviv's
According to organisers, at least 500 people have already scheduled flights to
The "fly in", as organisers are referring to the action, will bring protesters to Tel Aviv where they will all arrive within a two-hour period. At least fifteen organisations are involved in the event which is timed to coincide with peaceful demonstrations and actions within the occupied territories that have been set up by Palestinians. The travellers plan to travel from the airport to the
"The goal is very clear, we are all fed up with being obliged to lie when we arrive in Allenby [bridge] or Ben Gurion [Airport] when visiting our Palestinian friends," Mireille Rumeau, an organiser with the International Solidarity Movement in
"We are fed up with lying about being tourists, or coming for a pilgrimage. Now, they are all going to say: 'we are coming to visit our Palestinian friends that have invited us.' If they get through, there are events planned for Palestinian groups for us to take part in, as we were invited by them six months ago, and we are answering their call."
Rumeau said that approximately 350 of the participants that already have their tickets are from
The 'hooligans' are coming
Mazin Qumsiyeh is the international media spokesperson for the Welcome to Palestine Campaign in the
"The purpose is to bring internationals to join us and show solidarity in actions we're doing anyway," Qumsiyeh told Al Jazeera. "We ask internationals to come, the only difference from previous actions of solidarity is that these people have decided among themselves to come all on the same day to the airport and they are not going to tell the Israelis they are tourists, but they are coming in solidarity with the Palestinian people."
On July 5, Israeli Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch called the activists "hooligans" and said they would be barred entry.
"These hooligans who try to break our laws will not be allowed into the country and will be returned immediately to their home countries," he said.
In his first interview as Chief of Staff of the Israeli army, Yohanan Denino said that his forces "will use all the legal means in our hands, and we have many”, to stop the activists from proceeding with their plan to protest at Ben Gurion airport or to travel to the
Israeli media has reported that flights landing on July 8 from
Rumeau, whose group has been active in organising weekly protests against the
"We don't know what we will do, as we don't expect them [Israeli security] to let people leave the tarmac," she said. "They cannot allow 500 people to enter the small airport at Tel Aviv. We suppose they might stop the people from leaving the planes, and checking at that time who is going to
Qumsiyeh also does not know what the activists might expect from Israeli security forces.
"We can't predict what the Israeli authorities will do, but what they've done to individuals who have been honest about their goal of visiting Palestine is they have been interrogated for many hours, and possibly deported," he said.
Qumsiyeh hopes that Israeli authorities will "do the right and legal thing and let these people through".
"British citizens arriving at Ben-Gurion should be treated as Israelis are treated at Heathrow," he added. "They should not be interrogated and deported, just like if Israelis who are going to visit minorities in
A small risk
Should those on board the flights be allowed access into the occupied territories, they will join Palestinians in peaceful solidarity actions and other events that Qumsiyeh's group is helping organise.
The move comes as a flotilla of international activists who planned to try to breach
Organisers chose July 8 for the "fly in" as it is the date in 2004 that the UN's International Court of Justice issued an advisory opinion that
Laura Durkay, a
Durkay understands that Israeli security forces will likely turn them away at the airport and not allow the travellers to enter the
"We understand there is a good chance the Israeli government will prevent us from doing this, and that would show the world how this so-called democracy treats those of us who simply want to visit Palestinians and express our solidarity with them," she said.
Durkay said she understands that there is a possibility of the activists being treated badly by Israeli security, but added: "As internationals, we know the risk for us is much less the risk faced by Palestinians on a daily basis. It's a small risk compared to what Palestinians have to deal with all the time and don't have a choice about."
Follow Dahr Jamail on Twitter: @DahrJamail
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