The Free Gaza Flotilla and the Mavi Marmara

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The Mavi Marmara was one of seven vessels constituting the Free Gaza Flotilla Free Gaza Flotilla

The flotilla, consisting of seven ships, carried more than 700 people from 36 countries and a humanitarian aid cargo of over 10,000 tons of supplies including 500 wheelchairs, children's playgrounds, medical supplies for the injured and the sick, other basic humanitarian supplies and construction materials for building new homes for the thousands of people who currently live in tents and in ruins and for building schools for the children of Gaza.

The aid activists intending to provide help and support for the besieged people of Gaza, came from all over the world to help, from Algeria, Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Poland, Serbia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Syria, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States of America, and Yemen.

The flotilla included Members of Parliament and former MP's from Algeria, Egypt, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Kuwait, Morocco, Southern Cyprus, Sweden, Yemen, members of religious communities including 89 year old Archbishop Helarion Capycci, plus representatives of NGOs and reporters from the international press.

Click for photos and more information transporting humanitarian aid and aid workers to Gaza. Early on Sunday morning, 31 May 2010 at 0430 am, the Mavi Marmara was attacked in international waters in the Mediterranean by heavily-armed Israel assault troops (commandos) boarding from assault craft and rapelling from helicopters, shooting at the passengers as they boarded.

Some of the passengers attempted to repel the attack and defend themselves with a variety of makeshift weapons. In the ensuing military action, nine Murdered by Israeli commandos

The photographs of the Turkish activists killed by the Israelis are to the right and left on this page. Please move your mouse pointer over the photographs for more information, or click for more information of the passengers were shot dead by Israeli commandos, 23 seriously injured by Israeli gunfire and 31 passengers sustained other injuries caused by the Israelis on the ship and / or later in Israeli custody. Autopsies Preliminary autopsy report

The autopsy results on the bodies of those killed revealed they were peppered with 30 9mm bullets, many fired at close range. Five were killed by gunshot wounds to the head, according to the vice-chairman of the Turkish council of forensic medicine, which carried out the autopsies for the Turkish ministry of justice.

Dr Haluk Ince, the chairman of the council of forensic medicine in Istanbul, said that in only one case was there a single bullet wound, to the forehead from a distant shot, while every other victim suffered multiple wounds. "All [the bullets] were intact. This is important in a forensic context. When a bullet strikes another place it comes into the body deformed. If it directly comes into the body, the bullet is all intact."

The results revealed that a 60-year-old man, Ibrahim Bilgen, was shot four times in the temple, chest, hip and back. A 19-year-old, named as Fulkan Dogan, who also has US citizenship, was shot five times from less that 45cm, in the face, in the back of the head, twice in the leg and once in the back. Two other men were shot four times, and five of the victims were shot either in the back of the head or in the back, said Yalcin Buyuk, vice-chairman of the council of forensic medicine.

He added that all but one of the bullets retrieved from the bodies came from 9mm rounds. Of the other round, he said: "It was the first time we have seen this kind of material used in firearms. It was just a container including many types of pellets usually used in shotguns. It penetrated the head region in the temple and we found it intact in the brain."

Source Guardian 04/06/10 were performed in Turkey on the bodies those killed and a full medical examination of those who were wounded. A full report is yet to be publicly released.

At the time of the Israeli attack the MV Mavi Marmara was in international waters about 73 miles off the coast of Israel running on a bearing which would have ended up in Egypt. The ship's position and bearing, which was last recorded at 03:56 on 31st May by Marine Traffic, shortly before the Israeli navy jammed communications with satellite and other networks, is shown here, with a schematic representation here. The Israeli naval task force consisted of four battle ships, three helicopters, two submarines and thirty zodiac boats, some photographs of which may be seen

The Mavi Marmara under nighttime attack by Israeli commandos: Note the two helicopters and gunboat with forward gun trained on the Mavi Marmara

Click for more and larger photographs here

The Israeli military and the Israeli government have attempted to deflect responsibility for the killing and wounding of the passengers by employing a number of tactics. Firstly, claiming that their commandos suffered 'unprovoked attacks' and had to defend themselves against passengers armed with the 'weapons' shown here. Secondly, by a deliberate mis-information campaign, for example, falsifying a video of the communications between the Israeli attack force and the Mavi Marmara (here)), by falsifying photographs of 'weapons' and activists on the Flotilla (here), and by claiming that those who they killed were 'extremists' who wished to die to become Shahid (martyr).

It does seem incredible that in 2010 any state can attack civilian ships in international waters, kill, wound and capture the passengers, take the ships to their own port and confiscate (steal) them, the cargo, the passengers' possessions, then charge the crew and passengers with illegal entry! The killing and wounding of the passengers is by far the worst of the Israeli actions, but there still remains the question of theft of the ships and cargo, the many hundreds of cameras, mobile phones, laptops and recording devices, credit cards, and the large quantity of hard cash being taken as a gift to various aid agencies and NGO's in Gaza.

For further information please refer to the the Sadaka paper Israel's bogus excuses for piracy and the
Free Gaza Flotilla Report (External link, PDF 8.2MB).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Position of the Mavi Marmara at the time of the Israeli attack

 

The original position map was downloaded on 20th June 2010 from Marine Traffic here

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Schematic map of the position of the Mavi Marmara and the Israeli naval assault vessels

 

This schematic map of the Israeli attack is taken from the Mavi Marmara Report, which may be downloaded here

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'Weapons' discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla

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Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla: The Pepper-sprays.
As it says on the tin - these are for self defence and not ideal against armed commandos all of whom were wearing eye-protector masks.
Two of the packets are unopened and the other can appears unused - unlikely it would have been recapped after use in that situation.
The original photo EXIF is dated January 2003, though this was later edited by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs to read June 1st 2010
Click for more evidence of Israeli 'dirty tricks'.
 Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
The man with the large dagger 'attacking Israeli commandos'. Quite a scary picture until one looks closely.
This photo and caption appeared on the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the IDF websites, entitled "Knife-brandishing 'peace activist' aboard the Mavi Marmara". The photograph was in a passenger's camera confiscated (stolen) by the Israelis. (The photo date has been altered to 'June 3rd', long after the Israeli attack.)
In the background, daylight is streaming through the windows, yet the Israeli attack took place at night.
None of the people around him are wearing lifejackets, yet virtually all the passengers were wearing them after the attack started.
The people around him appear relaxed, taking photos, smiling and clapping.
The 'weapon' is a ceremonial dagger (Jambiya), which is part of the traditional Yemeni dress and still carried by many men in Yemen
Mohammad al-Hazmi was not threatening the commandos during the attack but showing the dagger as part of a group activity earlier on the voyage.

Click for more information and further evidence of Israeli 'dirty tricks'.
 Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
'Weapons' discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
'Weapons' discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
'Weapons' discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla Weapons discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla
'Weapons' discovered on the Free Gaza Flotilla

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Israeli propaganda dirty tricks: The man with the dagger

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The Israelis called him
a "knife-brandishing 'peace activist' aboard the Mavi Marmara"
  • The man with the large dagger 'attacking Israeli commandos'. Quite a scary picture until one looks closely. The man in question is Mohammad al-Hazmi, a Yemeni lawmaker, showing his ceremonial dagger (Jambiya), which is part of the traditional Yemeni dress and still carried by many men in Yemen, as you can see here.
  • In the background, daylight is streaming through the windows, yet the Israeli attack took place at night.
  • None of the people around him are wearing lifejackets, yet virtually all the passengers were wearing them after the attack started.
  • The people around him appear relaxed, taking photos, smiling and clapping.
  • The photo itself is not a fake but the attribution is. Mohammad al-Hazmi was not threatening the commandos during the attack but showing the dagger as part of a group activity earlier on the voyage.
  • The dagger also appears amongst the various knife 'weapons' that the Israeli claim were used against them. It is clearly a very old ceremonial item unfit for aggressive use.
  • The photograph was in a passenger's camera illegally confiscated (stolen) by the Israelis. (The photo date has also been altered to 'June 3rd', several days after the Israeli attack.)
  • The Israelis continue to use this picture for dis-information and propaganda. In a later version of the photograph used to front an Israeli anti-Flotilla video, this man, who was allegedly 'attacking Israeli commandos' at the time it was taken, is seen to be sitting down! Not a very good attacking stance!
See also these links:
Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs Max Blumenthal Ali Abunimah

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Israeli propaganda dirty tricks: The fake "Go back to Auschwitz" video

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This is another blatant dirty tricks attempt by the Israelis to discredit the Free Gaza Flotilla and the Mavi Marmara in particular.

The original on the left was uploaded to the web by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 30th May, and entitled "IDF - Navy Warns Flotilla", but oddly, dated 31 May 2010.

The fraudulent version on the right, which uses part of the same video footage but overdubbed with faked replies from the flotilla, was issued on 4th June by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF)Spokesperson, a formal agency of the IDF. The title is "Video: Mavi Marmara to Israeli Navy: “We’re Helping Arabs Go Against the US, Don’t Forget 9/11 Guys".

This the Israeli Defence Forces using the 'Holocaust card", the memory of Auschwitz, to falsify a video associating the people on board the Gaza relief ship with Nazism. As many other commentators have stressed, if an Israeli institution is prepared to use the Holocaust this way, then nothing whatever that the IDF say about this incident can be believed. The second fraudulent message to associate the Free Gaza Flotilla with the terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda, is another attempt to blacken the Flotilla in the eyes of the world.

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