Darlene Wallach is in a new prison in Ramle, a men's prison, but she's in a section reserved for illegal immigrants.
She wanted to pass on this information, "We were fishing about 7 miles off the shores of Gaza. The Israeli soldiers came on board the three boats via four Zodiacs. The frogmen came up and over each boat. They used a taser on Vik while he was still on the boat, then tried to push him backwards onto a sharp piece of wood. He jumped into the sea to avoid being hurt more than he already was and was in the water for quite a while.Then they came for me and forced me into the Zodiac at the point of a gun. They said, "You are in Israeli territory." even though it was obvious that all three boats were in Palestinian territory. They kidnapped me and Andrew and Vik and all of the Palestinian fishermen.
Today two women from immigration were there to see Darlene. They were very rude. Until just a few minutes ago, Darlene was refused a change of clothes and a mobile, but, thanks to Lubna and a nice woman at the prison, she now has both. The authorities are saying they will refuse to send Darlene to London and want to send her back to the United States.. The judge said she would make a decision today so Darlene is waiting to hear the ruling . She still does not have a passport. She sounded fine, relieved to finally be able to talk to someone outside Israel.
If you know ANY media who would like to interview her, please let me know and I will pass on Darlene's phone number to them. This story is vitally important to get out to the public.-- Greta BerlinMedia TeamFree Gaza Movement357 99 08 17 67www.freegaza.orgwww.anis-online.de/office/events/FreeGazaSong.htmwww.flickr.com/photos/29205195@N02/
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Israelis Arrest 15 Palestinian Fishermen and 3 Internationals Accompanying Them
Ed. note: This is a press release from the Free Gaza Movement, defying the Israeli blockade by bringing humanitarian supplies and international visitors to Gaza. They have now made three trips from Cyprus to Gaza and have also accompanied fishermen trying to fish in Palestinian waters off the coast of Gaza - the fishermen are routinely shot at and hosed with water cannons as they try to do their work to feed their families and community. See the links at the bottom for photos of the work of the Free Gaza Movement. For a video of the Israeli Navy's harrassment of the fishermen, see "A Day in the Life of a Gaza Fisherman": http://redressnewsblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/video-day-in-life-of-gazan-fisherman.html
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Caoimhe (Gaza) + 972 598 273 960
Donna (Gaza) + 972 598 836 420
Fida (Gaza - Arabic) – + 972 599 681 669
ISM Media Office - + 972 2-2971824
Fifteen Palestinian fishermen along with three internationals have been kidnapped in Palestinian waters by the Israeli Navy. They were fishing seven miles off the coast of Deir Al Balah, clearly in Gaza fishing waters and well within the fishing limit detailed in the Oslo Accords of 1994.
The fishermen and the human right's observers were transferred from 3 separate boats to the Israeli warships. Other Palestinian fishermen reported that the 3 boats were seen being taken north by the Israeli Navy.
The three internationals are Andrew Muncie from Scotland, Darlene Wallach from the United States and Victor Arrigoni from Italy. The U.K., U.S. and Italian embassies in Tel Aviv have been contacted and know about the abductions.
Please call the Israeli Ministry of Justice at +972 26 46 66 66 and register your outrage over these illegal actions by the Israeli Navy. Then call the Embassies in Jerusalem and make sure they know that many of us are appalled by Israel's illegal search and seizure.
Stephen Brown, UK Consulate +972 25 41 41 00
U.S. Consulate General + 972-2-6227230
Luigi MATTIOLO, Italian Ambassador +972 3 5104004
--
Greta Berlin
Media Team
Free Gaza Movement
357 99 08 17 67
www.freegaza.org
www.anis-online.de/office/events/FreeGazaSong.htm
www.flickr.com/photos/29205195@N02/
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Caoimhe (Gaza) + 972 598 273 960
Donna (Gaza) + 972 598 836 420
Fida (Gaza - Arabic) – + 972 599 681 669
ISM Media Office - + 972 2-2971824
Fifteen Palestinian fishermen along with three internationals have been kidnapped in Palestinian waters by the Israeli Navy. They were fishing seven miles off the coast of Deir Al Balah, clearly in Gaza fishing waters and well within the fishing limit detailed in the Oslo Accords of 1994.
The fishermen and the human right's observers were transferred from 3 separate boats to the Israeli warships. Other Palestinian fishermen reported that the 3 boats were seen being taken north by the Israeli Navy.
The three internationals are Andrew Muncie from Scotland, Darlene Wallach from the United States and Victor Arrigoni from Italy. The U.K., U.S. and Italian embassies in Tel Aviv have been contacted and know about the abductions.
Please call the Israeli Ministry of Justice at +972 26 46 66 66 and register your outrage over these illegal actions by the Israeli Navy. Then call the Embassies in Jerusalem and make sure they know that many of us are appalled by Israel's illegal search and seizure.
Stephen Brown, UK Consulate +972 25 41 41 00
U.S. Consulate General + 972-2-6227230
Luigi MATTIOLO, Italian Ambassador +972 3 5104004
--
Greta Berlin
Media Team
Free Gaza Movement
357 99 08 17 67
www.freegaza.org
www.anis-online.de/office/events/FreeGazaSong.htm
www.flickr.com/photos/29205195@N02/
Monday, November 17, 2008
Aftershock - Memories of an Israeli soldier in the Occupied Territories (video)
This video speaks for itself. Their service as paratroopers in the Israeli Defense Force continues to haunt and shape the lives of these young men today. Compellingly honest look at the work of the IDF in Palestinian areas like Gaza, Nablus and Hebron. And what of the people whose lives they traumatized and the families of the people they killed? Watch the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSlQ98r5QXo
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
From Northern Ireland, September 2008
It seems there are people all over the world sensitized to the injustices in Israel and Palestine and working for peace there - a hopeful sign. This photo was taken by Pat Melody on a trip in September of 2008.
More Israeli Attacks on Gazan Fishermen
For Immediate Release
November 9, 2008
Contact: Mary Hughes, Cyprus +357 96 75 00 59
Greta Berlin, Cyprus: +357 99 08 17 67
Osama Qashoo, +44 78 33 38 16 60
Angela Godfrey Goldstein, Jerusalem: +972 547 366 393
Gaza : All day
9:15 am. From a small Palestinian fishing boat, David Schermerhorn watched as Israeli sailors aboard a large Navy Gunboat put on Hazmat suits and masks. Five minutes later, the fishermen and internationals were blasted by water from a cannon mounted atop the gunboat. The water was filthy, with an appalling chemical smell to it.
Listening to David on his satellite phone, we could hear water hitting the cabin, a harsh thumping sound. It was pouring into the cabin as the boat flooded with water that drained out through the back. The sharp staccato of machine guns in the background clearly sounded close to the boat.
Everyone aboard the fishing boat was drenched.
Nikolas Bolos, a chemical engineer from Greece and one of the DIGNITY crew members, collected samples of water in glass containers for later analysis. The three internationals on board reported that, from the moment the boat approached the Israeli-imposed six-mile limit, it came under attack by machine-gun fire and water pulsing out of the powerful cannons.
11:30 am. David, "They have been shooting at us with water cannon off and on for the past two hours. Water has been hitting the boat from only 50 feet away. Vik, the Italian international, was yelling at the Israeli gunboat that there are three internationals on board, and the Palestinians are just fishing. We've moved into the cabin to get away from the heavy water-cannon fire as the gunboat has been trying to break the windows with the water. I've moved away from them just in case they shatter."
Early afternoon. "The gunboat is moving to the front of the fishing boat and is starting to bombard it with water again. There's a real possibility that the boat might break apart from that angle." David whispered from inside the wheelhouse.
5:00 pm, the boats were returning to the port. The boat David was on had brought in about 100 kilos of fish instead of the 1500 kilos they had caught a week before. Throughout the day to protect their catch from contamination by the chemical spray, the fishermen had lowered the nets back into the water. Much of the catch was lost.
"The sun is setting, and all was calm once we passed the 6-mile limit. But we were soaked with whatever was in that water, and we can only hope that none of us will get sick We'll certainly know more tomorrow." David said.
November 9, 2008
Contact: Mary Hughes, Cyprus +357 96 75 00 59
Greta Berlin, Cyprus: +357 99 08 17 67
Osama Qashoo, +44 78 33 38 16 60
Angela Godfrey Goldstein, Jerusalem: +972 547 366 393
Gaza : All day
9:15 am. From a small Palestinian fishing boat, David Schermerhorn watched as Israeli sailors aboard a large Navy Gunboat put on Hazmat suits and masks. Five minutes later, the fishermen and internationals were blasted by water from a cannon mounted atop the gunboat. The water was filthy, with an appalling chemical smell to it.
Listening to David on his satellite phone, we could hear water hitting the cabin, a harsh thumping sound. It was pouring into the cabin as the boat flooded with water that drained out through the back. The sharp staccato of machine guns in the background clearly sounded close to the boat.
Everyone aboard the fishing boat was drenched.
Nikolas Bolos, a chemical engineer from Greece and one of the DIGNITY crew members, collected samples of water in glass containers for later analysis. The three internationals on board reported that, from the moment the boat approached the Israeli-imposed six-mile limit, it came under attack by machine-gun fire and water pulsing out of the powerful cannons.
11:30 am. David, "They have been shooting at us with water cannon off and on for the past two hours. Water has been hitting the boat from only 50 feet away. Vik, the Italian international, was yelling at the Israeli gunboat that there are three internationals on board, and the Palestinians are just fishing. We've moved into the cabin to get away from the heavy water-cannon fire as the gunboat has been trying to break the windows with the water. I've moved away from them just in case they shatter."
Early afternoon. "The gunboat is moving to the front of the fishing boat and is starting to bombard it with water again. There's a real possibility that the boat might break apart from that angle." David whispered from inside the wheelhouse.
5:00 pm, the boats were returning to the port. The boat David was on had brought in about 100 kilos of fish instead of the 1500 kilos they had caught a week before. Throughout the day to protect their catch from contamination by the chemical spray, the fishermen had lowered the nets back into the water. Much of the catch was lost.
"The sun is setting, and all was calm once we passed the 6-mile limit. But we were soaked with whatever was in that water, and we can only hope that none of us will get sick We'll certainly know more tomorrow." David said.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Gazan Fishermen Attacked by Israeli Navy
This information comes from the Free Gaza Movement
See a video of Israeli Navy harrassment of these fishermen. The footage was taken from one Gazan fishing boat on 5 October 2008 as it fished in Gazan waters. 14 fishermen of Gaza have been killed by the Israeli Navy over the past four years as they were fishing off their coast.
For Immediate Release,
November 5, 2008
Contact: Mary Hughes, Cyprus +357 96 750059 Greta Berlin, Cyprus: +357 99 081767
David Schermerhorn, Cyprus +357 977 81 283
Angela Godfrey-Goldstein, Jerusalem: +972 547 366 393
Larnaca. When members of the Free Gaza Movement sailed to Gaza in August, several accompanied fishermen aboard their small boats. Israeli gunboats regularly confine these boats inside a 6-mile Israeli-imposed limit. Although international law allows every Mediterranean sea territory fishing rights 12-20 miles offshore, Israel ignores those laws and has killed at least 14 fishermen over the past few years.
"All we ever wanted to do was fish," said one as he fixed his nets. "We can't feed our families or make money doing what our ancestors have done for thousands of years."
Over the next two months, internationals reported and video taped several incidents of machine-gun fire and water-cannon attacks. Around 8:00 am, on October 31, ten internationals joined the fishermen as witnesses. By 8:30, the two lead boats had passed the Israeli limit. "The second boat was about 100 yards away from us when it was attacked for 30 minutes by a high-pressure water cannon from an Israeli warship. The spray was so powerful you couldn't even see the boat," said David Schermerhorn.
Throughout the day, as the men continued to fish, boats were hit so severely by high-pressure water cannon that only makeshift shutters and mattresses prevented the wheelhouse from flooding and windows from exploding onto the men. Within minutes, the Israeli water-cannon boat was joined by another gunboat, machine gun mounted in back. The gunner blasted multiple rounds within a meter of the fishing boat. Despite continued machine-gun fire, water cannons and three Israeli gunboats circling like sharks, the fishermen stayed out 10-11 miles for a catch.
When Angela Godfrey-Goldstein called Shlomo Dror, Israeli Ministry of Defense spokesman, to tell the Navy to stop machine gunning barely a meter over the heads of fishermen and internationals, he accused the rights advocates of being provocateurs, terrorists, supporters of Hamas. "The people of Gaza have plenty of food. They don't need to go fishing," he snarled.
"When the Ministry of Defense learns that this voyage brings a delegation of European parliamentarians, maybe he will begin to "get it." Average citizens of the world, even decision makers, are up in arms, non-violently, against the collective punishment, the state terrorism of the Israeli government. And we are restoring dignity to those abandoned human beings, just as we would have wanted to do in the past to others in other ghettoes" said Godfrey-Goldstein.
"I had only heard about these episodes before I came to Gaza. I can't begin to tell you the horror these men face every day by bullies in the Israeli Navy," an outraged Schermerhorn added. "What risks they take we don't even know about. The good news was the fishermen were ecstatic when they pulled up the nets. It was one of the largest catches they had had in years.
--
Greta Berlin
Media Team
Free Gaza Movement
357 99 08 17 67
www.freegaza.org
www.anis-online.de/office/events/FreeGazaSong.htm
www.flickr.com/photos/29205195@N02/
See a video of Israeli Navy harrassment of these fishermen. The footage was taken from one Gazan fishing boat on 5 October 2008 as it fished in Gazan waters. 14 fishermen of Gaza have been killed by the Israeli Navy over the past four years as they were fishing off their coast.
For Immediate Release,
November 5, 2008
Contact: Mary Hughes, Cyprus +357 96 750059 Greta Berlin, Cyprus: +357 99 081767
David Schermerhorn, Cyprus +357 977 81 283
Angela Godfrey-Goldstein, Jerusalem: +972 547 366 393
Larnaca. When members of the Free Gaza Movement sailed to Gaza in August, several accompanied fishermen aboard their small boats. Israeli gunboats regularly confine these boats inside a 6-mile Israeli-imposed limit. Although international law allows every Mediterranean sea territory fishing rights 12-20 miles offshore, Israel ignores those laws and has killed at least 14 fishermen over the past few years.
"All we ever wanted to do was fish," said one as he fixed his nets. "We can't feed our families or make money doing what our ancestors have done for thousands of years."
Over the next two months, internationals reported and video taped several incidents of machine-gun fire and water-cannon attacks. Around 8:00 am, on October 31, ten internationals joined the fishermen as witnesses. By 8:30, the two lead boats had passed the Israeli limit. "The second boat was about 100 yards away from us when it was attacked for 30 minutes by a high-pressure water cannon from an Israeli warship. The spray was so powerful you couldn't even see the boat," said David Schermerhorn.
Throughout the day, as the men continued to fish, boats were hit so severely by high-pressure water cannon that only makeshift shutters and mattresses prevented the wheelhouse from flooding and windows from exploding onto the men. Within minutes, the Israeli water-cannon boat was joined by another gunboat, machine gun mounted in back. The gunner blasted multiple rounds within a meter of the fishing boat. Despite continued machine-gun fire, water cannons and three Israeli gunboats circling like sharks, the fishermen stayed out 10-11 miles for a catch.
When Angela Godfrey-Goldstein called Shlomo Dror, Israeli Ministry of Defense spokesman, to tell the Navy to stop machine gunning barely a meter over the heads of fishermen and internationals, he accused the rights advocates of being provocateurs, terrorists, supporters of Hamas. "The people of Gaza have plenty of food. They don't need to go fishing," he snarled.
"When the Ministry of Defense learns that this voyage brings a delegation of European parliamentarians, maybe he will begin to "get it." Average citizens of the world, even decision makers, are up in arms, non-violently, against the collective punishment, the state terrorism of the Israeli government. And we are restoring dignity to those abandoned human beings, just as we would have wanted to do in the past to others in other ghettoes" said Godfrey-Goldstein.
"I had only heard about these episodes before I came to Gaza. I can't begin to tell you the horror these men face every day by bullies in the Israeli Navy," an outraged Schermerhorn added. "What risks they take we don't even know about. The good news was the fishermen were ecstatic when they pulled up the nets. It was one of the largest catches they had had in years.
--
Greta Berlin
Media Team
Free Gaza Movement
357 99 08 17 67
www.freegaza.org
www.anis-online.de/office/events/FreeGazaSong.htm
www.flickr.com/photos/29205195@N02/
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Free Gaza boats return with European dignitaries
Larnaca: On November 7, at 5:00 pm, the DIGNITY leaves for the third time for the shores of Gaza. This time, eleven past and current members of the European Parliament are on board, along with journalists from Al Jazeera English and The Independent.
These dignitaries were among the 53 Parliamentarians denied entrance by Egypt at the Rafah checkpoint: "Egypt did not allow us to enter Gaza via the Rafah terminal, but this will not stop us from visiting the area," Lord Nazir Ahmad, head of the European delegates stated, "We will sail to Gaza, we are determined to break the siege".
Ms Clare Short MP emphasized, "The Egyptian refusal to grant us access through Rafah Crossing is insulting to all of us, and Egypt should open the crossing now."
They will be on a three-day fact finding tour organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the European Campaign to End the Siege as well as several of the organizations in Gaza who have worked with the Free Gaza Movement on the past two voyages.
On the past two trips, Israel has threatened to stop the DIGNITY, arrest its passengers and tow the boat to Israel. The government has been silent on its plans this time, perhaps out of respect for the dignitaries on the voyage. Members of the two organizations stress that the DIGNITY has no intention of going anywhere near Israeli waters but will enter Gaza through its own coastal waters.
The port authorities have asked the media to come between 3:30 and 5:00 pm Friday at Larnaca Port to see the boat leave and to conduct interviews.
The passenger list is posted on the Free Gaza website, www.freegaza.org.
These dignitaries were among the 53 Parliamentarians denied entrance by Egypt at the Rafah checkpoint: "Egypt did not allow us to enter Gaza via the Rafah terminal, but this will not stop us from visiting the area," Lord Nazir Ahmad, head of the European delegates stated, "We will sail to Gaza, we are determined to break the siege".
Ms Clare Short MP emphasized, "The Egyptian refusal to grant us access through Rafah Crossing is insulting to all of us, and Egypt should open the crossing now."
They will be on a three-day fact finding tour organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the European Campaign to End the Siege as well as several of the organizations in Gaza who have worked with the Free Gaza Movement on the past two voyages.
On the past two trips, Israel has threatened to stop the DIGNITY, arrest its passengers and tow the boat to Israel. The government has been silent on its plans this time, perhaps out of respect for the dignitaries on the voyage. Members of the two organizations stress that the DIGNITY has no intention of going anywhere near Israeli waters but will enter Gaza through its own coastal waters.
The port authorities have asked the media to come between 3:30 and 5:00 pm Friday at Larnaca Port to see the boat leave and to conduct interviews.
The passenger list is posted on the Free Gaza website, www.freegaza.org.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
