Israeli troops have boarded another aid ship bound for the Gaza Strip. However, unlike the deadly confrontation on when Israeli troops stormed the Mavi Maramara aid boat earlier this week, killing seven people, there was no violence. The crew aboard the Irish aid ship, the MV Rachel Corrie, surrendered quietly on Saturday. Israeli forces boarded the ship, and escorted it into port, where the aid will be processed.
(Via Al Jazeera)
On Monday, Israeli commandos boarded ships in the “Freedom Flotilla” attempting to bring humanitarian aid to residents of still-blockaded Gaza. The aggressive response by Israel turned deadly, with at least nine activists killed. The international community has reacted with shock and outrage; protests have erupted around the world outside Israeli embassies, with protesters even teargassed in Paris. Benjamin Netanyahu has canceled a long awaited meeting surrounding peace talks with President Obama and headed back to Israel to do damage control, and Turkey, from where the flotilla departed, has recalled its ambassador and issued a travel warning to its citizens.
Huwaida Arraf was on one of the ships; she joins us via phone from Ramallah, along with Norman Finkelstein, to tell us what happened to her and offer some analysis on the situation.
(Via GRITtv)
For months international, Israeli, and Palestinian activists have been planning the Gaza Freedom March. Organizers hoped an international delegation of 1300 activists from around the world would break the siege on Gaza by marching through Gaza to the northern border and through the Erez crossing, then joining the Israeli march. The Real News reporters attended the Israeli side of the protest, and though the Egyptian government prevented the activists from entering Gaza, hundreds gathered to raise awareness of the desperate situation in Gaza a year after Operation Cast Lead.
This program was produced by The Real News for January 1, 2010.
For more information, visit:
http://therealnews.com
http://gazafreedommarch.org
Mairead Maguire was 32 when she and Betty Williams won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976. We talk with her from Ireland about her work for peace in Palestine. Maguire was on the ship Spirit of Humanity en route to Gaza when it was boarded by Israeli commandos.
This program was produced by Redeye Co-op Radio on September 19, 2009.
For more information, visit:
http://coopradio.org/redeye
As the Free Gaza Movement prepares to launch a new mission to Gaza with building and humanitarian supplies, the Israeli government has put pressure on the Cypriot authorities to stop the voyage. Cynthia McKinney and Greta Berlin discuss the movement, the trip and the efforts to break the naval blockade on Gaza.
This program was produced by the Free Gaza Movement for June 24, 2009.
For more information, visit:
http://freegaza.org
This week on Crossing The Line: Israel continues it’s nearly two-year closure of the Gaza Strip as thousands of medical patients take to the streets to protest this past week.
With the continued sealing off of all Gaza’s exits how can humanitarian relief be given to the strip’s 1.5 million residents who are facing a grave crisis, and more importantly how can Gazans be allowed to sustain their own futures rather than be wards of the UN. Melinda Borne, program director of United Palestine Appeal will join us to talk about it.
This program was produced by Crossing The Line for April 17, 2009.
For more information, visit:
http://ctl.libsyn.com
http://www.lifelinepalestine.org
http://www.helpupa.com
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met on Monday with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and a European Union delegation to discuss ways to reach an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza Strip. Aya Batrawy reports.
This program was produced by Voice of America News.
For more information, visit:
http://voanews.com
Sharon Lock discusses the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza.
This program was produced by the BBC.
For more information, visit:
http://news.bbc.co.uk
http://palsolidarity.org
As the situation in Gaza worsens, the International Solidarity Movement is one of the only international organizations with volunteers on the ground.
This program was produced by Press TV.
For more information, visit:
http://presstv.com
http://palsolidarity.org
Ten days of aerial bombing on Gaza has caused extensive devastation throughout the territory and is threatening the health and welfare of many children. Most of Gaza is without electricity, and the situation is turning into a massive humanitarian crisis.
UNICEF is calling for a permanent and sustainable humanitarian space in Gaza that includes access for supplies and staff, and the ability to distribute aid and make assessments.
The hospitals in Gaza are overwhelmed by casualties and are running low on medicines. More than half the population of Gaza is made up of children.
One boy’s story
Sixteen-year-old Baha has lived with 16 other members of his family in the basement of his Gaza City home since the bombing began.
“I’m trying to stay alive,” he said in a telephone interview with UNICEF Radio. “There’s no electricity, and as a result of that there is no healthy water to drink.”
“Everybody feels scared,” Baha said, as the sound of bombs and rockets echoed in the background. “Everyone is moving from his house because he’s afraid that his house will be hit from the air or from the land or from the sea.”
Schools closed
The military offensive began in the middle of exam period for students in the region, and schools have been closed ever since. Baha was in the middle of an Arabic exam when the Israeli campaign began.
“We won’t have school for at least two weeks,” he said.
Some Gazans are using schools as shelter. Many homes have been destroyed. Except for some health and food distribution centres, UN offices are closed in Gaza because of security concerns.
This program was produced by UNICEF.
For more information, visit:
http://unicef.org