It has now been confirmed that two ships that were to take part in the Freedom Flotilla II to Gaza have been sabotaged. One boat, a joint Greek-Swedish passenger boat, harboured in a Greek port was found with a damaged axel on Tuesday afternoon, and now another boat, an Irish passenger boat, in a Turkish harbour has been found to have exactly the same damage.
The damage is sufficient to prevent the boats from sailing. As Dror Feiler told Israeli Army radio '“I saw the damage and it is clear it was done in a planned and professional way,” he said. “The Israeli government is the only one that could benefit from this.” There can be no doubt that this was undertaken by Israeli special trained forces.
This is not only just another attempt on the part of Israel to hinder the boats from arriving at their destination, it is also a breach of Turkey and Greece's territory. Israel is now not only undertaking its illegal actions of terrorism on Palestinian soil, but has expanded its acts to Turkey and Europe. The governments of Turkey and Greece are as yet silent on the matter, showing their collusion with the Israeli State and its continued contravention of international law.
Flotilla organisers remain firm in their intention to depart ports to make their journey to Gaza, despite increasing fears for their personal safety.
For a video of the damage to the Greek-Swedish ship see:
http://www.freedomflotilla.eu/en/home/videos/video/281-Σαμποτάζ+σε+επιβατηγό+πλοίο+του+Στόλου+της+Ελευθερίας?groupid=8
For an article in the Turkish newspaper 'Hurriyet' see:
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=gaza-flotilla-organizers-claime...