Israeli Prime Minister offers support to the Gaza Freedom Flotilla - albeit indirect

An interesting post by the Palestinian American Activist Ali Abunimah.  It goes to show that maintaining lies is difficult, and over time the truth comes out, even if the Israeli government is the brain behind the lie.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered unexpected support to the Gaza Freedom Flotilla and others who plan to challenge his country's naval blockade of the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip. Haaretz reports his comments today:

"I call on all human rights activists in the world - go to Tehran, that's where there is a human rights violation," said Netanyahu during his meeting with the Austrian Chancellor, Werner Faymann, in which he discussed Israel's ease of the Gaza blockade and flotillas planning on breaching Israel's Gaza blockade. "Today, after we lifted the civilian blockade of Gaza there is no reason or justification for further flotillas," he said.

So what Netanyahu appears to be conceding is that the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, which Israel attacked in international waters, killing 9 passengers and injuring dozens of others on 31 May, was in fact fully justified as long as Israel maintained the blockade which he claims now to have lifted.

But of course Israel has not really lifted the illegal blockade. Netanyahu's comments demonstrate that Israel's main purpose is to relieve international pressure and avoid further embarrassing flotillas challenging it.

The reality remains that 1.5 million people in Gaza are locked into what amounts to a giant prison camp for surplus humans of the wrong sort. Israel controls land, sea and aerial access to them. Their crime is simply that they are not Jews, ....

 Read the rest of Abunimah's post here.

Khaled