Greek Coastguard Forces Canadian ‘Freedom Flotilla’ Vessel Back to Port; Irish, Swedish Ships Sabotaged
July 4th, 2011Nothing resulted from Israel’s slaughter of civilians and piracy last year, so… So it goes…
Via: Guardian:
An attempt by one of the Gaza-bound “freedom flotilla” ships to defy the Greek government and escape from port was thwarted on Monday when armed coastguard officials caught up with the vessel and forced it back to shore.
On a day that activists had dubbed “make or break” for the international coalition of boats seeking to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza, the Canadian ship Tahrir burst out of Agios Nikolaos port in Crete at 6pm local time after supporters blocked the coastguard with manned kayaks.
“We have left port [and] are full steam ahead – coastguard boat about 5-10 [minutes] behind us,” announced passengers on the ship’s official Twitter feed as they raced towards international waters. But the faster coastguard boat caught up with the Tahrir and prevented it from going any further.
“Our boat has just been illegally boarded by armed members of the Greek coastguard and commandeered against our will,” Dylan Penner, a member of Tahrir steering committee, told the Guardian by phone from the ship’s deck. “This is conclusive evidence that Israel’s unlawful siege on Gaza has now been extended to Greece.”
The captain of a US ship, The Audacity of Hope, was arrested after a similar failed attempt to flee the port in Athens last week.
The Greek government caused controversy on Friday when it banned all flotilla ships from leaving its ports, without explaining its reasons. Critics accused the beleaguered government of bowing to Israeli and US pressure and surrendering Greek sovereignty over its sea borders. The Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, thanked his Greek counterpart for helping to stamp out “anti-Israeli provocation”.
Related:
Irish Activists Say Israel Sabotaged Flotilla Vessel
Swedish Gaza Flotilla Ship Sabotaged
organizers from the Association France Palestine Solidarite have said:
“We were even told internally that the Israeli government has warned Greece they would press European countries not to give it financial aid. It’s hard to resist that kind of pressure,” she said.”
http://euobserver.com/9/32557