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“Israeli commandos had paintball guns” – Israeli Ambassador
Published: 02 June, 2010, 14:40
Edited: 05 June, 2010, 22:34
A television grab made from the Turkish TV channel Cihan News Agency shows an Israeli commando member storming the "Mavi Marmara" (AFP Photo / Cihan News Agency)
(19.5Mb) embed videoTAGS: Conflict, Middle East, Politics, Human rights, Gaza Stories, Law
Israeli soldiers who shot Freedom Flotilla activists did not intend to use arms, and were carrying paintball guns while boarding the ships. That is according to the Israeli Ambassador to Russia.
In an interview with Ekho Moskvy radio station, Israeli Ambassador Anna Azari said that Israeli soldiers did not plan to storm the flotilla at first.
“We thought that on board these ships are only human rights activists. That is why, when we decided to stop these ships, we did not plan any violence,” she said. “Nobody wanted to kill anybody. When they want to kill someone, especially on a big cargo ship like this, it is done with different methods.”
She said that the first video pictures received from the ship showed commandos with big guns. ”These are paintball guns, the minimum tool in case confrontation happens,” Azari explained.
She said that the fact that commandos were descending one by one on a rope does not speak in favor of the version of a planned combat operation.
“They just did not realize that when they descended, they would be attacked from all sides,” Azari said. She added that the ship had a large stock of metal bars.
Azari told the radio program that shooting from real guns started after passengers of the ship initiated violence against the soldiers. They dropped one of the soldiers head-first from one deck to another and used knives on two others, she said.
According to Azari, the action of the activists was a deliberate provocation.
”They said themselves that they had two goals: either to break through the Gaza blockade or to cause a big PR event,” she said.
However, according to one of the activists who was on board the ship Mavi Marmara at the time of the attack, much remains unclear about the details of the tragedy and Israel is not shedding any light on the situation.
Haneen Zuabi told RT that the Israeli Defense Force has video documents of what happened, but is deliberately showing only part of the picture.
“We are calling for an international investigation committee to ask all the documentation from the Israeli army. There are now in Israel about 500 passengers whom Israel is still arresting, so let the people, let the journalists, have interviews with these 500 people and let the Israeli army release all the documentation,” Haneen Zuabi told RT.
”We need this international committee to investigate what happened: why and how come Israel is above international law,” she added.
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There will probably be more disturbing news coming out, as the eye-witnesses get home and can talk. I was disturbed by the fact that one nineteen year old was first shot in chest, and then FOUR times in the head --- just for good measure. How was this soldier "defending" himself? And an American protester in Israel was hit by police in the face, and she lost her eye. I have seen the interview with Rachel Corrie's father. What haunts me from the death of that young, idealistic woman, is how without any care for human life, a driver of a bulldozer, without any mercy had her killed. Cruelty, arrogance, superiority --- all wrapped up in one. There was no "impartial" or any other kind of investigation in her death. It is perhaps a supreme folly when parents allow their kids to go to Israel in support of human rights, or any other humanitarian mission involving Israel. The public must be made aware of the fact that we are not dealing with a democratic nation that has any semblance of accountability, and has no value for human life. State Department needs to issue a warning to travellers as to the dangers they are likely to encounter. Instead, everything is peaches. But when incomprenensble things happen --- our officils look the other way and blame the victims.
Nineteen year old youth ,shot four times in the head and once in the chest,amongst the murdered . Here in the UK the "appologists for Israeli attrocities"are in full swing attempting to trivialise and justify this horrendous crime. Israel has calculated badly this time?Turkey is not a country that can be treated in this manner without consequence?
It is refreshing to read news free of Israeli censorship. All the major news outlets here in the United States broadcast only the Israeli version of the events. The massacre of peace activists on board the humanitarian flotilla and the support of United States of the indefensible Israeli action put in question the sovereignty of USA from Israel. The State of Israel is nothing more than a fascist state implanted to the Middle by Western Powers for control of the people and resources of the Middle East. The only way to free the people of the Middle East is to create balance of power, which means Russia and China should Support Iran and Syria to get Nuclear weapons. If there is a balance of power Israel will never be able kill and invade at will. Current situation the United States and West Army Israel to the teeth and disarm any state that opposes the perpetual violence that Israelis are committing against the Palestinians and the people Middle East.