Israel tells UN it will stop Gaza aid flotilla
AFP
Date: 8/20/2010
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) – Israel informed the United Nations Friday that it reserves the right to use force to stop a new aid flotilla from reaching the blockaded Gaza Strip.
In a letter sent to UN chief Ban Ki–moon, Israel's UN Ambassador Gabriela Shalev said the stated intention of the Bolivian–flagged all–women cargo ship Mariam "is to violate the existing naval blockade of Gaza."
She added that Israel also had information that another vessel, the Naji al–Ali, plans to leave from a Lebanese port with the aim of violating the blockade.
"Israel reserves its right under international law to use all necessary means to prevent these ships from violating the aforementioned naval blockade," Shalev warned.
She said such "confrontational actions by the organizers as well as those that offer their consent, is deeply troubling and requires the attention of the international community."
"Israel came under international censure over its May 31 seizure of a six–ship aid fleet bound for the Palestinian territory when Israeli commandos shot dead nine Turkish activists in a clash on the lead boat.
The Mariam, a Bolivian–flagged cargo ship originally named Junia Star, plans to leave from northern Lebanon for Cyprus on Sunday at 10:00 pm (1900 GMT) on the first leg of a planned voyage to Gaza, organizer Samar al–Hajj said Thursday.
The vessel, renamed in honor of the Virgin Mary, plans to carry aid to Gaza in a bid to break the four–year siege of the Strip with more than 50 Lebanese and foreign women activists on board, including local pop star May Hariri.
The Naji al–Ali, another Lebanese boat organised by journalists, has also announced it would sail to Gaza via Cyprus but has not yet received clearance from Lebanese authorities.
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