From: LGR <taliba.quran@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Jun 29, 2011 at 9:46 AM
Subject: [bangla-vision] Aid flotilla ship sabotaged as Israel threatens peace activists - Arab News
To: LGR <dazeylin@gmail.com>
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article463087.ece
Aid flotilla ship sabotaged as Israel threatens peace activists
US activists rally in Athens, Greece, on Monday in support of an international flotilla to blockaded Gaza. (AP)
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: Jun 28, 2011 11:57 Updated: Jun 28, 2011 23:33
ATHENS: Pro-Palestinian activists who plan to breach Israel's sea blockade of the Gaza Strip said Tuesday that they had increased security around their docked flotilla after an act of sabotage on one of the vessels in a Greek port.
In a statement, Scandinavian organizers said "hostile divers" had cut the propeller shaft of the "Juliano," a ship shared by Swedish, Norwegian and Greek activists. They said the damage can be repaired and that it would not affect plans to sail for the Palestinian territory toward the end of the week.
"We have increased alert on all the ships. We are having a 24/7 vigil," said Dimitris Plionis, a flotilla representative. He said the sabotage was carried out by "highly trained" individuals, possibly with a military or intelligence background, though he was not specific about the possible culprits.a
Norwegian delegation leader Torstein Dahle said in a statement that the incident shows "someone is willing to go to great lengths to stop the flotilla from sailing."
Citing intelligence reports, Israeli military spokeswoman Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich warned that the new flotilla is carrying sulfuric acid for use against Israeli soldiers if they try to board the boats. She said the navy has trained for the past year to deal with various scenarios and has developed "soft power tactics" to cope with flotilla passengers without engaging in physical contact with them.
"Boarding on the ships will be the last resort for us. We are planning to ask the flotilla not to head toward the Gaza port," she said. Leibovich emphasized the Israeli soldiers' right to defend themselves from any attack.
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, meanwhile, said on Tuesday the flotilla participants were seeking "confrontation and blood."
"They are clearly there to create a provocation, looking for confrontation and blood and for many pictures on television screens," Lieberman told Israel Radio, adding that there was a "hard core of terror activists" among the participants.
On their website, US participants in the flotilla said their intentions were peaceful and they would set sail "without weapons protection or threat of force."
--
Palash Biswas
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http://nandigramunited-banga.blogspot.com/
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