"The narrow cabinet, the prime minister and I, instructed the IDF action," said Minister of Defense Ehud Barak at a press conference today in response to the Israel Navy's interception of the flotilla to Gaza and the deaths in the incident. IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi and Israel Navy Commander Admiral Eliezer Marom participated in the press conference.
Barak said, "On one of the six ships, the participants initiated a violent confrontation. We express regret about the casualties, but the responsibility falls fully on the organizers of the flotilla and those who initiated the violence. The State of Israel called on the organizers of the flotilla to go to the Ashdod Port where their cargoes would be transferred to Gaza. All these calls were rejected. When boarding one of the ships, the troops were attacked with violence.
"There is no hunger in Gaza., and there is no humanitarian crisis there, but a terrorist organization that is growing stronger and firing rockets, and holding an Israeli soldier in violation of all international conventions. Israel therefore has the right to examine every cargo entering Gaza. The organization behind the ship where the violence occurred is a radical organization that supports terrorism under the guise of humanitarian assistance.
"This is a time for responsibility, and call for restraint, and not to let extremists exploit this regrettable incident to incite violence. Whatever the disagreements may be, Israel will defend itself everywhere and with every means necessary. The responsibility for the situation in Gaza falls entirely on the Hamas regime. Our hand is extended in peace. I call on all Arab countries not to divert attention from the heart of the issue."
Ashkenazi said, "What happened on the ship Marmara, on which there were activists of the extremist organization, Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (IHH), did not occur on the other ships. There was extreme violence on this ship from the moment our forces reached it. There was prior preparation with light weaponry, including iron bars, knives, and clubs, and at some point firearms were used. This violence forced the soldiers to use their weapons, and the soldiers acted as required under the circumstances."
Marom said, "We prepared properly. In the past several weeks, we warned the organizers. When they dismissed the warnings and decided to sail to Gaza, we set out to sea to undertake the mission, while warning the ships that they could not enter Gaza. They used obscene language and other things that I do not wish to repeat. When we stopped the ship, the soldiers were attacked with extraordinary violence. As a consequence, their lives were threatened and to protect themselves, the troops were forced to fire their weapons to avoid being killed."
Meanwhile, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan cut short a visit to Chile and is returning to Ankara. The Turkish government also ordered the Army chief of staff to return home from Cairo. Greece has cancelled a joint naval exercise with the Israel Navy and called Israel's Ambassador to Greece for explanations. The Kuwait government and the Syrian parliament have called emergency meetings.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 31, 2010
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