Tag: Turkey-Israel

Turkey threatens diplomatic break with Israel over raid

Turkey has for the first time threatened to break diplomatic ties with Israel over its raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla in May.

Turkey’s foreign minister said a break could only be averted if Israel either apologised or accepted the outcome of an international inquiry into the raid.

The Israeli government said it had nothing to apologise for.

Ankara curtailed diplomatic relations with Israel after the naval raid, in which nine Turks were killed.

Turkey – which until recently was Israel’s most important Muslim ally – withdrew its ambassador and demanded that the Israelis issue an apology, agree to a United Nations inquiry and compensate the victims’ families.

A Turkish foreign ministry official told the BBC relations with Israel had hit rock bottom, but Ankara would not rush into cutting ties.

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Turkey would be satisfied with the ongoing Israeli inquiry if that found Israel to be at fault.

Mr Davutoglu told Hurriyet newspaper: “[The Israelis] will either apologise or acknowledge an international, impartial inquiry and its conclusion. Otherwise, our diplomatic ties will be cut off.”

He also said there was now a blanket ban in place on all Israeli military aircraft using Turkish airspace, not just on a case-by-case basis.

The BBC’s Jonathan Head in Istanbul says that Turkey appears to be hardening its stance towards Israel, just five days after a surprise meeting between Mr Davutoglu and Israeli Trade Minister Benjamin Ben Eliezer in Switzerland.

Reacting to the new Turkish stance, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said: “We don’t have any intention to apologise.”

‘Ultimatums’

Foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor told AFP news agency: “When you want want an apology, you don’t use threats or ultimatums.”

Israel says its commandos acted in self-defence after being attacked by activists wielding clubs and knives as the troops boarded one of the aid convoy ships.

Activists on board the Mavi Marmara say lethal force was used from the start of the raid by Israeli forces.

The vessel was part of a flotilla trying to break Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Israel says the blockade is needed to prevent the supply of arms to Islamist group Hamas, which controls the territory.

Turkey and Israel forged strong military and trade ties following Ankara’s recognition of Israel in 1949.

But relations have cooled in recent years. The Turkish government headed by the AK Party – which has Islamist roots – strongly criticised the raid launched by Israel in Gaza in December 2008.

In January 2009, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stormed out of the World Economic Forum in Davos, after a clash with Israeli President Shimon Peres.

In January this year, Israel was forced to apologise over the way its deputy foreign minister treated the Turkish ambassador.

ANALYSIS

Jonathan Head,
BBC News, Istanbul

Emotions are still raw enough over this incident for both sides, Turkish and Israeli, to maintain the hardest possible line, even if behind the scenes they say they want to salvage the relationship.

Although Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu made a hardline statement, it doesn’t look like a fundamental change in position: Turkey is still adamant Israel acted illegally and the flotilla was in international waters.

Turkey’s demands for an apology, compensation and an international inquiry have been unflinching. But Mr Davutoglu did say Turkey would be satisfied if the Israeli inquiry resulted in Israel being found at fault and if the Israeli government apologised. That seems unlikely.

Behind the scenes, the Obama administration is pushing these key US allies to fix their ties. But there is no realistic way of them mending relations for some time yet.

BBC

July 5, 2010
Gul likens Israel to al-Qaeda

Turkish president says flotilla raid ‘crime’ closer to act of terror group than of sovereign state, adds Israel must offer compensation if it wants forgiveness

Israel must make amends to be forgiven for a commando raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, including apologizing and paying compensation, Turkish President Abdullah Gul told the French daily Le Monde.

Gul added that if Israel made no move to heal the rift, then Turkey could even decide to break diplomatic relations.

In an interview published on Friday, Gul said the Israeli raid at the end of May, which killed nine activists, was a “crime” which might have been carried out by the likes of al-Qaeda rather than a sovereign state.

“It seems impossible to me to forgive or forget, unless there are some initiatives which could change the situation,” Gul was quoted as saying by Le Monde.

Asked what these might be, he said: “Firstly, to ask pardon and to establish some sort of compensation.” He added that he also wanted to see an independent inquiry into the botched raid and a discussion on lifting Israel’s blockade of Gaza.

Asked if Turkey might break relations with Israel if they did nothing, Gul said: “Anything is possible.”

Once a close ally of Israel, Turkey recalled its ambassador following the flotilla incident, cancelled joint military exercises and said trade and defense deals worth billions of dollars would be reduced to a minimum.

Separately, Philip Alston, the UN special rapporteur on extra-judicial executions, said any inquiry set up by Israel to investigate the Gaza flotilla incident “must be given a genuine capacity to find the facts” or it would not be credible.

To comply with international standards, he said, such an inquiry would have to be independent of the government and have full legal authority to obtain direct access to all relevant evidence, including the military personnel involved.

Israel has fended off a UN demand for an international investigation, instead accepting a US proposal for an Israeli inquiry with the participation of outside observers.

Ynetnews

June 14, 2010
Israel apologises for spoof video mocking Gaza flotilla

The Israeli government has apologised after its press office emailed to journalists a spoof video about the flotilla which tried to dock in Gaza.

The video shows people dressed as peace activists singing “we con the world” to the tune of We Are the World.

A spokesman said the video did not represent the Israeli government’s view.

The video contains real footage of the Israeli raid on the flotilla in which nine activists died.

‘Bluff’

In the clip, which parodies the video made for the 1985 charity song, the singers are dressed up in costumes representing the captain of the flotilla, western peace activists, and Arabs wearing keffiyeh scarves.

“There’s no people dying, so the best that we can do, is create the greatest bluff of all”, they sing.

“We are peaceful travellers, we’re waving our own knives,” the song goes.

The song builds to a chorus of “we con the world, we con the people. We’ll make them all believe the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) is Jack the Ripper.”

At one point the singer dressed as the flotilla captain sings “Ithbah al-Yahud” which means “slaughter the Jews” in Arabic.

The video is interspersed with footage from the Israeli commando raid on the Mavi Marmara, the Turkish lead vessel of the flotilla which tried to break an Israeli and Egyptian blockade on Gaza last week.

‘Funny’

Nine passengers on board were killed during the Israeli commando raid on the ship.

The ships were towed to the port of Ashdod and the activists deported.

Mark Regev, spokesman for the Israeli Prime Minister’s office, told the UK’s Guardian newspaper: “I called my kids in to watch it because I thought it was funny. It is what Israelis feel. But the government has nothing to do with it.”

The video was made by the Hebrew satirical website Latma.co.il, run by Jerusalem Post deputy editor Caroline Glick.

On her website she said the clip featured “the Turkish-Hamas ‘love boat’ captain, crew and passengers in a musical explanation of how they con the world.”

“We think this is an important Israeli contribution to the discussion of recent events,” Ms Glick wrote.

But there has also been condemnation of the spoof.

“The video is a repulsive attempt to use satire to make Israel’s case on Flotilla debacle,” Didi Remez of the Coteret blog said.

June 13, 2010
Erdogan and the Israel Card

by Steven J. Rosen
Wall Street Journal
June 10, 2010

The deaths of nine Turkish citizens in the Gaza flotilla incident would have brought a severe reaction under any circumstances. What is nonetheless striking in this incident is the unbridled anger and fiercely hostile reaction of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish public. Mr. Erdogan said Israel was guilty of “state terrorism” and a “bloody massacre.” His foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, said “This attack is like 9/11 for Turkey,” comparing it to a premeditated act of aggression that took 2,900 lives.

Mr. Erdogan does not always display such reactions to allegations of human rights violations. Last year, he defended Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, indicted by the International Criminal Court for killing half a million Sudanese Christians and non-Arab Muslims. In March 2010, he denied that Turks ever killed Armenian civilians. He labeled a U.S. congressional resolution on the Armenian deaths “a comedy, a parody.” He said that the Turkish military garrison stationed in Cyprus since 1974 is “not an occupier” but “[ensures] the peace.” On tens of thousands of Kurds killed by Turkish security forces from 1984 to 1999, he says nothing.

Could it be that there is something more to Mr. Erdogan’s rage against Israel than just a spontaneous reaction to the loss of life here?

Turkish elections, 13 months away, hold the answer. Backing for Mr. Erdogan’s party has fallen to 29%, the lowest level since it won power in 2002 and far below the 47% it scored in July 2007. So Mr. Erdogan decided to play the Israel Card.

He tested this tactic in January 2009, in a confrontation with Israeli President Shimon Peres at Davos. Mr. Peres asked him in front of the cameras: “What would you do if you were to have in Istanbul every night a hundred rockets?” Mr. Erdogan shot back, “When it comes to killing you know very well how to kill.” Thousands of Turks applauded Mr. Erdogan’s performance, greeting him with a hero’s welcome and a sea of Turkish and Palestinian flags upon his return home to Ataturk Airport.

Mr. Erdogan’s anger at the Israeli blockade is even more popular among his countrymen. In fact, 61% of Turks surveyed in one poll did not find his rage sufficient. “The public is in such a state that they almost want war against Israel,” the pollster commented. “I think this is widespread in almost all levels of society.” Mr. Erdogan has become a hero in the Muslim world, where he is seen as the “new Nasser,” in the words of one Saudi writer.

The truth is that friendship toward Israel was always limited to the Turkish secular elites, including the military chiefs. Turkey is fertile ground for Mr. Erdogan’s demagoguery because many ordinary people are raised to dislike Israel and—dare it be said—Jews. In April 2010, the BBC World Service Poll found negative views of Israel among 77% of Turks.

Jews as a people fare no better than the Jewish state. In the 2009 Pew Global Attitudes survey, 73% of Turks rated their opinions of Jews as “negative.” Meanwhile, 68% of Turks rated their opinions of Christians as “negative.”

Turks don’t like the United States much more than they do Israel. The same BBC poll found negative views of the U.S. among 70% of Turks, one of only two countries where perceptions of the United States actually worsened after the election of Barack Obama (positives fell to 13% from 21%, and negatives increased to 70% from 63%).

Nor is it the case that anti-Americanism in Turkey is primarily a response to U.S. support for Israel. Many Turkish citizens view the U.S. as anti-Muslim and see the war on terror as an anti-Muslim crusade across the Middle East. Turks resent the rich “imperialist” superpower and believe that the U.S. invaded Iraq for oil.

Islamists and the Turkish left suspect that the U.S. and NATO propped up a succession of Turkish governments backed by the military. Others believe that the U.S. supports the Iraqi Kurds and may plan to create a Kurdish state in Iraq. And most remain convinced that members of the U.S. Congress who vote for Turkish genocide resolutions do so under the influence of Armenian-Americans, who are more numerous than Americans of Turkish origin.

Anti-American feelings in Turkey exist independently of anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism, but these three phenomena are mutually reinforcing and convergent. More disturbingly, parallels to these trends pervade much of the Muslim world. What the flotilla incident demonstrates is that igniting this tinderbox of hostility toward Israel, Jews and America does not take much of a spark.

Mr. Rosen is the director of the Washington Project of the Middle East Forum.

https://www.meforum.org/2668/erdogan-and-the-israel-card

June 10, 2010
NATO or Israel?

James Joyner | June 03, 2010

Israel’s attack on a Gaza aid flotilla, killing nine, has earned near-universal condemnation, with even sympathetic observers terming it the act of a bully, tone deaf, staggeringly stupid, tactically incompetent, a major tactical blunder, a moral victory for Hamas, and an unqualified disaster for Israel’s reputation. But Israel is rather accustomed to international scorn and has every right to chart its own course. However, this latest incidence has potentially grave consequences for United States and its transatlantic allies.

Turkey, a founding member of the NATO alliance and heretofore Israel’s only friend in the region, is apoplectic.

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu proclaimed Tuesday morning, ““Psychologically, this attack is like 9/11 for Turkey.” As idiotic as that may seem — there were 9 deaths, not 3000, and the incident involved provocateurs flouting a naval blockage, not innocents in the Turkish homeland — the actions of his government indicate that the sentiment is genuine.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israel of “state terrorism” and he told his parliament the Israeli assault violated “international law, the conscience of humanity and world peace.” Erdogan proclaimed the incident “a turning point in history. Nothing will be the same again.” Serkan Demirtas, writing in Hurriyet, sees “a long-term diplomatic war between Turkey and Israel” as “unavoidable.” Similar statements have been made by Turkish pundits and analysts, including those considered moderates.

Erdogan, noting what seems to be the end of the Turkish-Israeli alliance for the foreseeable future, proclaimed, “Turkey’s hostility is as strong as its friendship is valuable.” And veteran columnist Sami Kohen proclaims, “Turkey now is one of the sides in the Middle East conflict. It is quite clearly opposed to Israel.”

Erdogan also raised the specter of Article 5: “Citizens of member states were attacked by a country that was not a member of NATO,” he said. “We think that should be discussed in NATO.” Again, this is overblown. Whatever one thinks of the Israeli action, it was decidedly not an attack on Turkey “in Europe or North America.” And, while Article 6 makes provisions for extending the umbrella of protection to “forces, vessels, or aircraft of any of the Party” operating in the Mediterranean Sea, it rather clearly is intended to apply to the defense of colonial territories.

But security analysts Steve Hynd and Robert Mackey think this irrelevant and that if Turkey invokes the Charter, the U.S. will face a dire choice, indeed. As Mackey puts it:

Because if Turkey invokes the NATO charter and the US doesn’t react, then NATO is GONE. GONE and DEAD. Why? Because when the US was attacked on 9/11, the NATO charter was invoked–and that is why NATO troops are in Afghanistan today. 9/11 was proof that NATO was not just an ‘anti-Russian’ pact–that it applied anywhere. If the US doesn’t go along with a Turkish response…it will reveal NATO as being a “US pact”–that the entire alliance exists only to help the US. Oh, there will still be mutual defense treaties with the UK and maybe Germany. But that is just about it. And the US will have to go on its own in Afghanistan.

Legally, this strikes me as over-reach. But politically? At very least, Turkey’s continued membership in the alliance would be in question. They’ve already moved to distance themselves from the West in recent years. And, goodness knows, the European allies would be happy for any excuse at all to get out of Afghanistan.

All the major European powers have criticized Israel’s actions, with Angela Merkel, Nicolas Sarkozy, and David Cameron all issuing stern statements. More interestingly, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has weighed in with uncharacteristically stern words:

I offer sincere condolences to the families of all victims and condemn the acts which have led to this tragedy. I add my voice to the calls by the United Nations and the European Union for a prompt, impartial, credible and transparent investigation into the incident.

As a matter of urgency, I also request the immediate release of the detained civilians and ships held by Israel.

While tame by op-ed standards, diplomats don’t use words like “victims” and “condemn” lightly.

National Interest senior editor Jacob Heilbrunn asks the right question: “Where does this leave Israel and America?”

Thus far, the Obama administration is keeping its powder dry, issuing a cautious statement expressing “deep regret at the loss of life in [the] incident, and concern for the wounded” while also stressing “the importance of learning all the facts and circumstances around this morning’s tragic events as soon as possible.” That’s exactly the right position for the world’s superpower—and perhaps Israel’s only remaining friend—to take at the outset. But the facts are quickly coming in and it will be time to make tough calls.

In the meantime, stalling for time isn’t going to please anyone. Certainly not the Turks, who have already declared themselves “deeply unsatisfied” with the response.

Does it matter? American administrations have stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel and against the international community dozens of times in the past. But the stakes are higher now.

Writing in this space, journalist and author Barbara Slavin declared, “Israel has scored an own-goal, shifting the narrative from Iran and its nuclear and human rights transgressions to Israel’s lack of regard for pro-Palestinian lives.” Former National Interest editor and current Naval War College professor Nick Gvosdev agrees, noting that the “argument that Iran is violating its international commitments and so should be sanctioned may be much harder to make.” And, as the Financial Times’s Gideon Rachman notes,

. . . a sanctions package against Iran is arguably as much in the interests of Israel, as in the interests of the US itself. The US may now feel that it has to go along with a UN condemnation of Israel to preserve the chances of getting its Iran resolution through. It would be a classic Israeli own goal, if their assault on the Gaza ships sank the choices of a new resolution on Iran.

Apparently, the impending World Cup has analysts thinking of soccer.

But Iran isn’t the only issue at stake. Turkey is a pivotal state bridging East and West, Christendom and Islam. The Christian Science Monitor’s Yigal Schleifer:

Ankara’s shift complicates a historic alliance between Turkey and the US, which has become more important in recent years. An air base in southern Turkey is one of the most important transit bases for ferrying troops and supplies to Afghanistan. Turkish mediation, meanwhile, had gotten Israel and Syria back to the peace table until that effort was aborted when the Gaza war broke out.

Increased tension between Turkey and Israel clouds one of the few sunny spots the US had previously enjoyed in the region.

The deterioration in the once-close relationship between Turkey and Israel has been mirrored by an equally precipitous rise in Turkey’s visibility and involvement in the Middle East, an area that it had kept at arm’s length for decades because of historical enmity and mutual suspicion.

Switching sports, the ball is now in Obama’s court. Will he handle this according to the national-security interests of the United States? Or will he continue a bipartisan tradition of subordinating our interests to Israel’s? My bet, alas, is on the latter.

James Joyner is managing editor of the Atlantic Council. This essay was originally published by The National Interest. Photo credit: Getty Images.

June 3, 2010
UN condemns Israel’s deadly raid on blockade-busting aid convoy as British relatives face anxious wait for news

United Nations calls for impartial investigation

One Briton injured – 28 believed to be on flotilla

Israel: This was not a successful operation

Turkey accuses Israel of ‘state terrorism’

The United Nations Security Council today condemned Israel’s bloody commando raid on the Gaza flotilla and which left up to 19 dead and called for an impartial investigation into the incident.

In a statement released after a marathon 12-hour session, the body attacked ‘those acts’ which resulted in the loss of life.

But it stopped short of naming Israel outright, a move designed to placate the country’s closest ally the United States.

The statement, which called for ‘a prompt, impartial, credible and transparent investigation, is unlikely to assuage Turkey.

Ankara had used some of the harshest language against the Jewish state for launching the raid against the flotilla, which included a Turkish ferry on which the pro-Palestinian activists were killed.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, whose country drafted the initial presidential statement, called the Israeli raid ‘banditry and piracy’ on the high seas and ‘murder conducted by a state’.

The United Nations Security Council today condemned Israel’s bloody commando raid on the Gaza flotilla and which left up to 19 dead and called for an impartial investigation into the incident.

In a statement released after a marathon 12-hour session, the body attacked ‘those acts’ which resulted in the loss of life.

But it stopped short of naming Israel outright, a move designed to placate the country’s closest ally the United States.

The statement, which called for ‘a prompt, impartial, credible and transparent investigation, is unlikely to assuage Turkey.

Ankara had used some of the harshest language against the Jewish state for launching the raid against the flotilla, which included a Turkish ferry on which the pro-Palestinian activists were killed.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, whose country drafted the initial presidential statement, called the Israeli raid ‘banditry and piracy’ on the high seas and ‘murder conducted by a state’.

The United Nations Security Council today condemned Israel’s bloody commando raid on the Gaza flotilla and which left up to 19 dead and called for an impartial investigation into the incident.

In a statement released after a marathon 12-hour session, the body attacked ‘those acts’ which resulted in the loss of life.

But it stopped short of naming Israel outright, a move designed to placate the country’s closest ally the United States.

The statement, which called for ‘a prompt, impartial, credible and transparent investigation, is unlikely to assuage Turkey.

Ankara had used some of the harshest language against the Jewish state for launching the raid against the flotilla, which included a Turkish ferry on which the pro-Palestinian activists were killed.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, whose country drafted the initial presidential statement, called the Israeli raid ‘banditry and piracy’ on the high seas and ‘murder conducted by a state’.

The incident happened in international waters and worldwide condemnation of Israel was swift.

Former British ambassador to the UN Sir Jeremy Greenstock said there had been ‘immediate international rage’ following the ‘unnecessary loss of life’.

He said that Israel had to make sure weapons were not getting into Gaza ‘so some kind of defence is necessary but this was clearly not very well handled’.

Sir Jeremy added: ‘It’s past time by some years for serious international action to end the blockade and the virtual starvation of Gaza.

‘This is not going to work as a way of dealing with the Palestinian territories over the long term.

‘It’s not going to work, frankly, for a democratic and law-abiding nation such as Israel – it’s changing the character of Israel to be responsible for this kind of occupation for so long.

‘And to my mind, this situation is just not necessary as it stands at the moment.’

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Conflict Issues said the flotilla raid had caused ‘indescribable pain” to the families of those killed and “provoked anger around the world’.

The three MPs co-chairing the group – Liberal Democrat Simon Hughes, Labour’s John McDonnell, and Conservative Gary Streeter – released a statement urging all sides to renounce violence.

They said: ‘As long as this long-running dispute remains unresolved, we fear that many more lives will be lost on all sides, resulting in even more pain and further deepening the hatred and distrust between all those involved.

‘Conflict resolution has been successfully used to end conflict in other parts of the world – now it’s time for the Israel-Palestine conflict to be resolved, for good.’

Turkey, from where most of the dead are said to come, accused Israel of ‘state terrorism’ and withdrew its ambassador to Tel Aviv.

Tens of thousands marched through Istanbul and attempted to storm the Israeli consulate, chanting: ‘ Murderous Israel, you will drown in the blood you shed.’

Deputy prime minister Bulent Arinc called Israel’s actions ‘piracy’ and cancelled three planned joint military exercises.

Foreign Secretary William Hague ‘deplored the loss of life’ and asked for access to the British involved, while David Cameron branded the attack ‘unacceptable’.

The deadly clash sparked a wave of furious condemnation of Israel – with 2,000 demonstrators outside the gates of Downing Street and thousands more outside the Israeli Embassy in West London.

In Paris, hundreds clashed with police near the Israeli Embassy. Police responded by firing tear gas.

The White House, which has close ties with both Israel and Turkey, expressed ‘deep regret at the loss of life in today’s incident, and concern for the wounded’.

Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu cancelled a trip to Washington planned for today to head home as the crisis erupted.

He expressed his ‘full backing’ for the military action.

Earlier, the UN said it was ‘shocked’ by the violence. Following a 90-minute open meeting, the Security Council went into closed-door consultations. Diplomats said envoys were haggling over the text of a proposed statement by the council, a task that dragged on into the evening.

Many council members criticized the Israeli action with varying degrees of vehemence, and said it was time for Israel’s three-year-old blockade of Hamas-controlled Gaza to be lifted.

‘This is tantamount to banditry and piracy,’ Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the council. ‘It is murder conducted by a state.’

The Jewish state argues that the blockade, which began in 2007, is necessary to prevent arms reaching the Hamas-controlled enclave.

The high-profile aid mission – unofficially supported by Turkey – set off from Cyprus on Sunday, led by the Turkish passenger ferry the Mavi Marmara, with 500 people aboard and 10,000 tons of food, medicines and building materials.

There were two other passenger ships – one Irish and one Swedish – and three cargo ships thought to be all Turkish. After warnings from Israel to turn back, they were intercepted before dawn yesterday by three warships about 40 miles from Gaza, still within international waters.

Commandos launched their raid on the Marmara by helicopter, slipping down a rope to the top deck. Greta Berlin, a founder of the Free Gaza Movement and one of the organisers of the flotilla, claimed the marines fired indiscriminately at unarmed civilians.

‘We are all civilians,’ she said. ‘Every one of us is a civilian who is trying to break Israel’s blockade of one and a half million Palestinians.’

Audrey Bomse, another spokesman for the movement, told the BBC: ‘We were not going to pose any violent resistance.’

However the Israeli Defence Force posted a video on the internet site YouTube of footage taken from the helicopter which it claimed showed its soldiers being attacked as they landed.

Defence Minister Ehud Barak said the commandos had orders to use ‘minimum force’ to commandeer the vessels, and met only token resistance on the other five ships.

But he said the forces were ‘ambushed’ on the Mavi Marmara by protesters using ‘extreme violence’ with weapons including two pistols, knives and iron bars.

The commandeered ships were brought several hours later into the port of Ashdod, where passengers were given the option of being voluntarily deported or arrested and taken to Israeli prisons.

There was a communications blackout, with the surviving protesters’ satellite phones being confiscated, making it impossible to hear their version of events.

The Daily Mail

June 1, 2010