The following posts are linked to the Elder of Ziyon:
Israel's legal right to blockade Gaza
From the MFA (via email):
1. A maritime blockade is in effect off the coast of Gaza. Such blockade has been imposed, as Israel is currently in a state of armed conflict with the Hamas regime that controls Gaza, which has repeatedly bombed civilian targets in Israel with weapons that have been smuggled into Gaza via the sea.
2. Maritime blockades are a legitimate and recognized measure under international law that may be implemented as part of an armed conflict at sea.
3. A blockade may be imposed at sea, including in international waters, so long as it does not bar access to the ports and coasts of neutral States.
4. The naval manuals of several western countries, including the US and England recognize the maritime blockade as an effective naval measure and set forth the various criteria that make a blockade valid, including the requirement of give due notice of the existence of the blockade.
5. In this vein, it should be noted that Israel publicized the existence of the blockade and the precise coordinates of such by means of the accepted international professional maritime channels. Israel also provided appropriate notification to the affected governments and to the organizers of the Gaza protest flotilla. Moreover, in real time, the ships participating in the protest flotilla were warned repeatedly that a maritime blockade is in effect.
6. Here, it should be noted that under customary law, knowledge of the blockade may be presumed once a blockade has been declared and appropriate notification has been granted, as above.
7. Under international maritime law, when a maritime blockade is in effect, no boats can enter the blockaded area. That includes both civilian and enemy vessels.
8. A State may take action to enforce a blockade. Any vessel that violates or attempts to violate a maritime blockade may be captured or even attacked under international law. The US Commander's Handbook on the Law of Naval Operations sets forth that a vessel is considered to be in attempt to breach a blockade from the time the vessel leaves its port with the intention of evading the blockade.
9. Here we should note that the protesters indicated their clear intention to violate the blockade by means of written and oral statements. Moreover, the route of these vessels indicated their clear intention to violate the blockade in violation of international law.
10. Given the protesters explicit intention to violate the naval blockade, Israel exercised its right under international law to enforce the blockade. It should be noted that prior to undertaking enforcement measures, explicit warnings were relayed directly to the captains of the vessels, expressing Israel's intent to exercise its right to enforce the blockade.
11. Israel had attempted to take control of the vessels participating in the flotilla by peaceful means and in an orderly fashion in order to enforce the blockade. Given the large number of vessels participating in the flotilla, an operational decision was made to undertake measures to enforce the blockade a certain distance from the area of the blockade.
12. Israeli personnel attempting to enforce the blockade were met with violence by the protesters and acted in self defense to fend off such attacks.
AddThis
Posted by Elder of Ziyon at 9:47 AM Comments
Links to this post
If the IDF intended to kill protesters... (open thread)
...then how come the only dead people were on the ship that attacked the IDF soldiers?
The other five ships surrendered and no one was hurt.
Just more proof of Free Gaza lies. News organizations must be careful not to trust a single word that they say. They know that their lies get broadcast as fact in real time, and FGM has a history of taking advantage of that, especially when the media is hungry for new details.
------------
I am not as available today to blog as I would like, so feel free to comment with any new stuff you find.
Posted by Elder of Ziyon at 8:50 AM
Video of "peace activists" stabbing IDF soldier
From Channel 2 news, via Ma'ariv:
Posted by Elder of Ziyon at 7:58 AM
International law for armed conflicts at sea
The San Remo Manual on International Law Applicable to Armed Conflicts at Sea says in paragraph 67:
67. Merchant vessels flying the flag of neutral States may not be attacked unless they:
(a) are believed on reasonable grounds to be carrying contraband or breaching a blockade, and after prior warning they intentionally and clearly refuse to stop, or intentionally and clearly resist visit, search or capture.
There is abundant evidence from both sides that there was prior warning, that the ships refused to stop, and that they resisted the visit and being searched. And the ships were very publicly breaching a blockade.
(h/t AB)
Posted by Elder of Ziyon at 7:32 AM
Video of "peace activists" ambushing, beating soldiers
osted by Elder of Ziyon at 7:14 AM Comments (3)
Links to this post
"Peace activists" with guns - the IHH
Although the details are sketchy of what happened so far on the Mavi Marmara, it is clear that some of the "peace activists" who organized the flotilla were not very peaceful.
What is certain is that Free Gaza's characterization of the events is a lie:
Under darkness of night, Israeli commandoes dropped from a helicopter onto the Turkish passenger ship, Mavi Marmara, and began to shoot the moment their feet hit the deck. They fired directly into the crowd of civilians asleep.
YNet's video shows a large crowd of these "peaceful people" with what appear to be metal bars waiting for the soldiers to arrive so they can beat them - which they proceed to do. If that is not life-threatening, I don't know what is.
Israel has announced that they found other weapons on board, including guns and knives.
The main Turkish "aid" organization, IHH, has clear ties to terror, as can be seen at Harry's Place. The CIA has documented links between that group and extremist groups in Iran and Algeria back in 1996.
A paper from Danish Institute for International Studies speaks about IHH:
[T]he phenomenon of charitable front groups that provide support to Al-Qaida is by no
means exclusively limited to the Arabian Peninsula. Indeed, elsewhere in the Muslim world,
other such entities have been established with near equal success – as in Turkey, with the so called Foundation for Human Rights, Liberties, and Humanitarian Relief (IHH). Turkish
authorities began their own domestic criminal investigation of IHH as early as December
1997, when sources revealed that leaders of IHH were purchasing automatic weapons from
other regional Islamic militant groups.43 IHH’s bureau in Istanbul was thoroughly searched,
and its local officers were arrested. Security forces uncovered an array of disturbing items,
including firearms, explosives, bomb-making instructions, and a “jihad flag.” After analyzing
seized IHH documents, Turkish authorities concluded that “detained members of IHH were
going to fight in Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Chechnya."
According to a French intelligence report, the terrorist infiltration of IHH extended to its
most senior ranks. The report, written by famed counterterrorism magistrate Jean-Louis Bruguiere, revealed that IHH President Bulent Yildrim had directly conspired in the mid-1990s to “recruit veteran soldiers in anticipation of the coming holy war [jihad]. In particular, some
men were sent into war zones in Muslim countries in order to acquire combat experience.”45
Furthermore, in the hopes of “obtaining political support from these countries, financial aid
was transferred [on behalf of IHH], as well as caches of firearms, knives, and pre-fabricated
explosives.”46 An examination of IHH’s phone records in Istanbul showed repeated telephone
calls in 1996 to an Al-Qaida guesthouse in Milan and various Algerian terrorist operatives
active elsewhere in Europe – including the notorious Abu el-Ma`ali, who has been subsequently
termed by U.S. officials as a “junior Osama Bin Laden."
During the later Seattle trial of would-be Al-Qaida Millenium bomber Ahmed Ressam, federal
prosecutors called French magistrate Bruguiere to the stand as an expert witness. Bruguiere
testified that IHH had played “[a]n important role” in the Al-Qaida Millenium bomb plot
targeting LAX. Under repeated questioning, Bruguiere insisted that “[t]here’s a rather close
relation”:
The IHH is an NGO, but it was kind of a type of cover-up… in order to obtain
forged documents and also to obtain different forms of infiltration for Mujahideen
in combat. And also to go and gather[recruit] these Mujahideens. And
finally, one of the last responsibilities that they had was also to be implicated or
involved in weapons trafficking.48
This was one of the major groups behind the flotilla - a charity group that is a front of Islamic terrorism.
Posted by Elder of Ziyon at 6:43 AM
