BICOM

The departure of the planned flotilla to Hamas-controlled Gaza has been delayed, with ships due to participate currently in port in Greece. Questions regarding the seaworthiness of some of the ships, a Greek public sector strike and other procedural delays have served to hold up the flotilla, which had been scheduled to sail this week. The number of expected participants has also dropped dramatically. Whereas the organizers had originally spoken of a figure of 1500 expected participants, it is now thought that around 300 people will take part. Organizers are claiming that two ships due to take part in the flotilla have suffered deliberate damage. These are the Saoirse from Ireland and a Greek-Swedish chartered ship, the Juliano, which is currently undergoing repairs. It was reported yesterday that one ship had already set off for the Gaza Strip, but this was later revealed to be incorrect. The ship had simply been en route to Greece to join with other craft set to take part in the flotilla.

International disapproval of the flotilla initiative, meanwhile, is continuing to build up. A statement by the French Foreign Ministry yesterday called the flotilla a “bad idea that is expected only to increase tension and be a source of conflict.” While criticizing the flotilla initiative, the statement also expressed opposition to Israeli policies vis-à-vis Gaza. Turkish officials, too, have strongly questioned the need for a flotilla at this time. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the Turkish secretary-general of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, was quoted in the Turkish media as saying that there was no need for a repeat of last year’s events. He noted Israel’s easing of the closure and said that aid was being brought into the Gaza Strip via land routes.

Speaking to Israeli Channel 2 News, Israeli defence minister Ehud Barak confirmed that Israel would stop the flotilla by force if necessary but appeared to play down fears of a violent confrontation between the IDF and the flotilla. He said that he expected the flotilla to be more peaceful than last year, but that small groups of protestors that try to resist violently could not be ruled out.