Flotilla

The United Nations report on the Mavi Marmara incident, entitled "Report of the Secretary-General’s Panel of Inquiry on the 31 May 2010 Flotilla Incident," is now public and largely exculpates Israel.  All the facts are as Israel contended and as the Commission notes "Israel faces a real threat to its security from militant groups in Gaza.

The Israeli navy prevented a French ship called the Dignity from running its blockade of Gaza today, according to news reports in the Jerusalem Post and Haaretz. "The Dignity was carrying 17 pro-Palestinian activists. It was part of the Free Gaza Movement’s flotilla that was canceled earlier this month after Greece refused to allow the ships to leave its ports for the Gaza Strip," the Jerusalem Post reports.

The AP reports that the latest flotilla has been prevented from sailing to Gaza by Greek authorities:

Greece on Friday banned ships heading to the Gaza Strip from leaving Greek ports, and a vessel carrying several dozen American protesters which left port without permission was ordered to return.

Interested in supporting the Palestinians in Gaza? Support Israel, which provides tons of aid and support to the Palestinians. The Israel Defense Forces has a short video, explaining how it actually works:

A bipartisan group of members of Congress has written a letter to Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, asking to "help work out a mechanism with Israel to allow legitimate humanitarian assistance to go to Gaza without provoking a needless confrontation."

Only days after Israel took the unprecedented step of agreeing to participate in a UN investigation on the Gaza flotilla incident, assurances given by the Obama administration have proven to be empty.

Former federal prosecutor Andy McCarthy recently argued at National Review Online that the federal government has reason to investigate Rashid Khalidi, an activist Middle Eastern studies professor at Columbia University.  What prompted this?

The provocative anti-Israel posture of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the AKP firebrand, appears to have lost some favor within Turkey itself. But how about among the two and a half million Turkish immigrants and their descendants in Germany? Could Turkish Muslims in Western Europe, under AKP influence, become a major, new focus of radicalism?

All parties in the German Parliament passed a resolution last Thursday slamming the Jewish state for its interception of a flotilla heading for Gaza in open violation of Israel’s naval blockade.

The widespread condemnation Europeans have expressed toward Israel after its commandos boarded the so-called peace flotilla on May 31 - and used force only when threatened with death - signals a desire to turn every Israeli action of self-defense into absolution for the crimes of the Holocaust.

Last week, the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC announced it was supporting letters circulating Congress – a House version and a Senate one – supporting the Jewish state’s right to defend herself and reaffirming American support of its liberal democratic ally in the Middle East.  The Senate letter is led by Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and GOP Leader Mitch McConnell.  In the House, Republican Ted Poe and Democrat Gary Peters, joined by Steny Hoyer and Eric Cantor and Howard Berman and Illeana Ros-Leithene, are leading the effort.

Elliott Abrams writes:

Fresh on the heels of the world’s condemnation of Israel for blocking a convoy bringing aid to Hamas-ruled Gaza comes the United States Supreme Court’s statement of support…for Israel.