Det er en kedelig affære. Mærkeligt at der ikke graves i at israel ikke har lov til at handle i internationalt farvand - det er en overtrædelse i sig selv.
Mærkeligt også at tilsyneladende ingen interesserer sig for hvad der er blevet af nødhjælpsforsyningerne. Har Israel konfiskeret den?

Det er en misorståelse at tro, at Israel ikke har ret til at forsvare sig, fordi det sker i internationalt farvand.

Danske krigsskibe i Aden-bugten opererer også i internationalt farvand, hvor de angriber den ene piratbåd efter den anden.

Det er nemlig tilladt, hvis man skal forhindrede pirateri, terrorisme og andre former for ulovligheder.

Så Israel var i sin gode ret til at stoppe skibet.

Var de ved at forsvare sig? Var de angrebet? Blev de truet? Var de ombordværende terrorister? Næppe, fopr alle er nu underlagt militær tavshed og censur. Og imens kører det israelske propagandaapparat, og dets nyttige idioter, på fuld damp for at afspore enhver nøgtern vurdering af hændelserne, som Israel ikke synes om. De har allerede udtalt at ville gentage sådanne - for andre lande - ulovlige handlinger.

F.eks. har FN bedt om en uvildig undersøgelse, hvor USA så straks mener, en sådan skal ledes af Israel selv!

Hvad med bare at prøve at forstå andre synsvinkler?

"“Israel has shot itself yet again in the foot. This was a disastrous operation with so many killed and wounded in international waters. It was totally unjustifiable,” says Prof. Moshe Maoz from Jerusalem’s Hebrew University.

“The damage Israel has done to itself is enormous and it is a wound which will just grow. It has irreparably damaged its relationship with the international community and with the Muslim world. The Israeli government is going from bad to worse,” Maoz told IPS.

“Israel’s behavior has given Hamas more positive publicity than the organization could ever give itself,” Samir Awad, an academic at the Birzeit University, near Ramallah, told IPS.

Gideon Levy, a journalist from the Israeli daily Ha’aretz and acerbic critic of Israeli government policy, caustically summed up the country’s Mediterranean misadventure as “the freedom flotilla trapping the Israeli ship of fools in a sea of stupidity.”

Approximately 700 people from 40 countries, including journalists and about 35 parliamentarians, on six boats were attempting to deliver 10,000 tons of aid to the besieged civilian population of Gaza.

However, before they had even left international waters, one of the boats, the Mavi Marmara, was attacked by heavily armed Israeli commandos.

Some of the activists fought back with crude instruments, and a disputed number were left dead after the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers opened fire.

Foreign journalists have been unable to verify the exact number killed or the nationalities and names of all of the wounded due to a military blackout on the information.

Despite the disproportionate use of force by the commandos, the Israeli foreign ministry and military have been working overtime to make the commandos appear the victims of “violent peace activists.” But many are not buying this scenario, including many on the Israeli Left, and international censure has been swift.

Twelve countries, mostly European but several Arab countries too, have called the resident Israeli ambassadors in demanding explanations. Turkey and Greece have canceled joint military maneuvers with Israel.

NATO held emergency talks on Tuesday at the request of Turkey, which lost the lion’s share of nationals in the botched raid.

Many in NATO acknowledge that unarmed Turkish civilians were killed after their boat was attacked in international waters as they were carrying out a humanitarian mission.

Turkey has recalled its ambassador to Israel, and it appears doubtful that the relationship between Israel and Turkey will ever fully recover, despite the fact that Turkey was hitherto Israel’s strongest ally in the region.

The UN Security Council on Monday condemned and called for an impartial investigation into Israel’s actions, while UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon urged Israel to lift its blockade on the coastal territory.

Richard Falk, UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, urged the international community to prosecute those responsible for the deaths of the Gaza flotilla activists.

William Hague, British foreign secretary, called on Israel to open all of Gaza’s border crossings.

“I deplore the loss of life during the interception of the Gaza Flotilla. Our embassy is in urgent contact with the Israeli government. We are asking for more information and urgent access to any British nationals involved,” stated Hague.

Even long-time Israeli ally and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd condemned the Israeli action and called for the siege to be lifted.

Five Australians were on the FG boats, including two respected journalists from the daily Sydney Morning Herald. Both have refused to sign Israeli deportation orders and are currently being held in detention. Another Australian man was shot in the leg."