- Update 6/1/10 - See also my post on Turkey's nefarious role in staging and encouraging this flotilla. See also George Friedman in Stratfor Intelligence Report: Flotillas and the Wars of Public Opinion. Anti-Israel activists took a page out of Israel's own playbook from the "Exodus" 1947 incident. I wonder how many people will care that the convoy of ships was organized by a terrorist organization? (On terrorist organization, see also here.)
- (Original Post) Ed Morrissey of HotAir has the most comprehensive coverage so far. Look for anti-American and anti-Israel propaganda to flourish, but be sure to read this post and see the video and get the true picture. Organizers and people on these ships bound for Gaza were anything but "peace activists."
Cliff May quotes Claudia Rosett:
The basic narrative spun by the organizers of the "freedom flotilla" is to "break the siege of Gaza" and "establish a permanent sea lane between Gaza and the rest of the world." But there's some important information that the flotilla crew omits. Gaza is a terrorist enclave controlled by an Islamist terrorist group, Hamas, backed by Iran. It has a busy and violent history of suicide bombings, shootings and rocket and mortar attacks; and is dedicated to the destruction of Israel. It is Hamas-run Gaza that threatens its neighbors and is hostile generally to liberal, Western societies.
Egypt has also had miseries enough with Hamas to find it worthwhile maintaining the blockade, though this seems to be of less interest to the "freedom flotilla" crowd. This ship convoy is not about freedom and not about aid. It is patently about helping Hamas and harming Israel.
Me: It is important to recognize that Israel had offered its ports for the offloading of humanitarian aid and then see it transported to Gaza. But the "peace activists" would not agree. They insisted on provoking an incident. And, unfortunately, they succeeded.