Second Free Gaza mission faces Israeli non-passage threat

Date: 28 / 10 / 2008  Time:  14:06
Bethlehem – Ma’an –

Despite Israeli occupation government threats of no-passage, the second Free Gaza boat set sail from Cyprus on Tuesday with Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council Mustafa Al-Barghouthi aboard along with and several members of the European parliament and medical doctors.

The SS Dignity, the successor to the Free Gaza ship, sent the Israeli occupation government notice on Monday that they would be entering Gaza carrying no weapons and having been cleared by Cyprus customs officials. The letter assured that the intention of the mission, like the first, was purely humanitarian. The group said it expected to make an uneventful landing in Gaza on Wednesday.

On Tuesday morning the Jerusalem Post published an article quoting unnamed Israeli officials who stated that they have “no plans to tolerate a repeat performance” of the Gaza ships.

In a press statement Tuesday afternoon the Free Gaza movement commented, “Israel has not bothered to inform us of a legitimate reason for preventing us from delivering medical supplies, doctors, lawyers, and prominent human rights advocates to the Gaza Strip. Indeed, Israel has not bothered to communicate with us at all.”

They reiterated their determination to enter Gaza a second time, and indicated that there would be several following ships.

From on board the ship Barghouthi said “The aim from this voyage is to assure the people of Gaza that West Bank Palestinians are united with them; it holds a message of solidarity.”

He added that all Palestinians could show their support for unity by urging all political parties to take the national conciliation talks in Cairo next month seriously.

Egypt decides to ban international parliamentary delegation from entering Gaza

[ 28/10/2008 - 08:57 AM ]

BRUSSELS, (PIC)--

The European campaign for lifting the siege on Gaza has strongly condemned the Egyptian government's decision not to allow a big international delegation of MPs enter Gaza Strip, describing such decision as practical participation in the siege.

The delegation was set to depart to Gaza in the first week of next month to see for themselves the deteriorated health and educational conditions in the tiny Strip which had been under crippling Israeli economic siege since June, 2006.

Lord Nazir Ahmad, head of the delegation, said that the delegation strongly condemns and deplores the Egyptian decision of denying it entry into Gaza although the visit was humanitarian.

He added that the international delegation of lawmakers have the right to see for themselves the miserable life conditions in the Gaza Strip, underlining, "We expected Egypt that alleges it helps the Palestinian people and wants to lift the siege to open the Rafah crossing and to let the delegation pursue the visit and look into the harsh conditions there".

In statement he made in the Belgian capital Brussels, Dr. Arafat Madi, the chairman of the campaign that is organizing the visit, also condemned the Egyptian decision, describing it as "practical participation in the suffocating siege imposed on the Gaza Strip that reaped the lives of more than 250 Palestinian patients so far".

"We strongly deprecate the barring of 53 international lawmakers from entering Gaza who want to look into the miserable human conditions of the 1.5 million Palestinians living under a crushing blockade for the third successive year", asserted Madi.

The international delegation of MPs comprises of 53 lawmakers from Britain, Ireland, Sweden, Greece, Italy, Switzerland, Scotland, and the EU parliament, in addition to MPs from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and a number of Arab countries.

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