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Aid Ships Head to Gaza Despite Israeli Objection

   VOA News 26 May 2010
   Palestinian  members  of  the  Hamas  naval police ride boats during a
   display  of  their preparations for the arrival of the small flotilla,
   at the port in Gaza City, 26 May 2010

Photo: AP

   Palestinian  members  of  the  Hamas  naval police ride boats during a
   display  of  their preparations for the arrival of the small flotilla,
   at the port in Gaza City, 26 May 2010

   A  convoy  of  ships  carrying construction material and other aid for
   Palestinians   is   sailing  toward  the  Gaza  Strip,  setting  up  a
   confrontation with the Israeli military.
   Eight  ships from Mediterranean ports in Europe and Turkey are heading
   for  Gaza.   The  flotilla  plans to assemble near Cyprus and sail to
   Gaza by Saturday.
   The  cargo  and passenger vessels are carrying 10,000 tons of supplies
   and  700  activists  seeking  to circumvent an Israeli blockade on the
   Palestinian territory.
   Israel  has  said  it  will  not  allow the aid convoy to reach Gaza.Â
   Israeli  army  official Colonel Moshe Levi describes the maneuver as a
   "provocation,"  because many of the building supplies aboard the ships
   are already allowed in Gaza, and that the humanitarian situation there
   is "good and stable."
   A  [1]recent  U.N. report on Gaza, nearly one-and-one-half years after
   Israel's   military   offensive  there,  said  three-quarters  of  the
   buildings damaged during the fighting still await repairs.
   Israel  imposed  a  blockade on Gaza after the Islamist militant group
   Hamas  seized control of the territory in 2007.  The Israeli military
   has sought to stop militants from receiving materials that can be used
   to attack Israel.
   The military has stopped other vessels carrying aid to Palestinians in
   the  past.   Last  June, Israeli authorities intercepted a vessel and
   briefly   detained   activists   on   board,  including,  former  U.S.
   congresswoman Cynthia McKinney.
   The  flotilla  currently  on  its way to Gaza was organized by various
   rights groups including the Turkish organization IHH.
   Political  ties between Turkey and Israel have been strained since the
   Gaza Strip offensive.
   On  Tuesday,  Turkish  Foreign  Minister called for Israel to lift its
   blockade  on  the  territory,  but  emphasized that the aid mission is
   above all a civilian initiative.

   Â

   Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.

References

   1. http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/12session/A-HRC-12-48.pdf

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