Netanyahu to UN Chief: Upcoming Gaza flotilla must be
stopped
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells UN
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon that the flotilla, scheduled to head
toward the Gaza Strip in May, is a provocation and goods can easily be
transported to the strip via land.
By
Barak Ravid
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Friday to stop the impending flotilla
that is supposed to set sail to the Gaza Strip in May.
The Israeli prime minister told the UN Chief
that the flotilla is being organized by extreme Islamists that are
interested only in provocation. He added that the ship's key goal is to
fuel tensions, particularly in light of the fact that the Gaza Strip is
open to all types of goods brought in via land.
The Mavi Marmara, aboard which Israel's
deadly raid on a
Gaza-bound flotilla resulted in the deaths of 9 Turkish activists May
22, 2010
Photo by: AP
"Hamas
is a terrorist organization and Iranian proxy," Netanyahu said, adding
that "it was just recently revealed that part of Iran's efforts is to
arm [Hamas] and smuggle weapons into the strip."
The prime minister then reminded the UN
Chief of the recent incident of the Victoria ship earlier this month,
upon which tens of tons of weapons from Iran were found and confiscated
by Israel. Netanyahu told Ban that this is proof that Israel must act
aggressively against the flotilla.
The Israel Navy intercepted an estimated 50
tons of weapons from Iran earlier this month aboard the Victoria, a
cargo ship bound for the Gaza Strip, including sophisticated land-to-sea
missiles that could have enabled Palestinian militants to hit ships at
Ashdod Port or at sea, or other Israeli targets like a crude oil depot
or a gas drilling rig.
The shipment also included instruction manuals in Farsi, and there were
other clues that explicitly showed Iranian involvement.
Israel began a public campaign this month
against the Turkish IHH organization as well as other left-wing European
organizations who plan on sending a flotilla to May. Fifteen ships are
expected to head towards the strip.
The exact departure date of the ships is
still undecided, however the Foreign Ministry expects it to be sometime
between May 15, Naqba Day, and May 31, the one-year anniversary of when
Israeli naval forces boarded the Mavi Mara, destined for Gaza in an
attempt to prevent it from breaching the blockaded on the strip. Nine
Turkish citizens were killed.
The organizers of the upcoming flotilla have named it the "Freedom
Fleet".
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/netanyahu-to-un-chief-upcoming-gaza-flotilla-must-be-stopped-1.353536
NOTE: It will be interesting to see if, when told to jump, Moon asks, "How
high?"
Hajja Romi
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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