FRANCE/NETHERLANDS: Activists returning from Turkey talk about Israeli commando raid on Gaza-bound flotilla

Record ID: 784173

  • Title: FRANCE/NETHERLANDS: Activists returning from Turkey talk about Israeli commando raid on Gaza-bound flotilla
  • Date: 5th June 2010
  • Summary: THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS (JUNE 4, 2010) (REUTERS) NEWS CONFERENCE JOURNALISTS LISTENING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) ANNE DE JONG, ACTIVIST ONBOARD "CHALLENGER", SAYING: "My friend from Belgium, a young girl, was hit by a rubber bullet in her face and was bleeding all over her face, her body her trousers. When I asked the soldiers to let me go and take care of her, to see if she was okay, they cuffed me on my back, pushed me on the floor. Four soldiers were on top of me. When I did not remain silent and said "I want to help my friend. She is bleeding, can't you see she needs help," they tried to get me off the boat and into a small military boat, which I shouted I did not want to do that. "I want to help my friends on my boat". They brought me to the front of the boat, where they hand-cuffed me, put me on my knees and and put a bag over my head to disorient me." PHOTOGRAPHER TAKING PICTURE (SOUNDBITE) (English) ANNE DE JONG, ACTIVIST ONBOARD "CHALLENGER", SAYING: "I've been afraid. We've just seen military commando's attacking another boat. You see people falling, you see people collapsing. And you see blood everywhere. If you then see commando's coming to your ship, you're simply afraid and very confused. When I was handcuffed on my knees with a bag over my head I could not believe what was happening. You feel that you are in a very bad movie. You think this is only happening in Guantanamo bay or Afghanistan. Not to me. This is not real. I didn't do anything. I am non violent". NEWS CONFERENCE
  • Embargoed: 20th June 2010 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: War / Fighting,International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA7UR3F1S5LAMBHRIRKYFPCFW67
  • Story Text: French peace activists aboard the Gaza-bound aid convoy recently stormed by Israeli commandos, spoke about their experiences at news conferences in Paris on Friday (June 4).
    Nine people were killed when Israeli marines stormed the Mavi Marmara on Monday (May 31) to stop a convoy of six ships trying to break a naval blockade of 1.5 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
    One activist, Thomas Sommer Houdeville, likened the experience to being hijacked by the Somali pirates.
    "It was like being somewhere off Somalia on a French cargo ship, attacked by pirates at 4am in international waters, and nine French marines get shot by bullets. There are pictures showing that at one point they tried to defend their ship with whatever means they had with them, like trying to physically push the intruders or throwing parts of the boat, like screw nuts, at them. In this scenario, they would have been heroes," he said.
    In a second news conference on Friday afternoon, Lilane Glock, lawyer for some of the activists said two criminal complaints for abduction had been filed and that they were asking the French government to intervene in the matter.
    "Two criminal complaints have been filed and other will follow. We are saying to the government, France is capable of carrying out an investigation where these French citizens are concerned. Judicially, France can and must do it. The French President said he wanted a fair and credible investigation. The simplest thing to do in this matter would be for the French government to investigate into what the French people have experienced," Glock said.
    Another activist aboard the aid vessel, Salah Berbagui, spoke about the violence that took place on board.
    "When the commandos violently attacked the vessel, we tried to resist passively. At one point when we saw that we were helpless and that they had taken over the ship, we tried to calm the people who were with us, who wanted to continue to resist the attack. We avoided any more killings this way. At this point we were held at gun point with M16 rifles. We tried everything so that no one gets killed and once everything calmed down, the journalists were attacked, their cameras were taken away forcefully. I had to literally stand between an Israeli soldier and a journalist who refused to give up her camera," Berbagui said.
    Salah Berbagui said the 50 people on board consisted of journalists and aid workers from the United States of America, Sweden, Italy, Greece among others.
    Meanwhile an activist from the Netherlands, Anne de Jong, has returned from Turkey.
    De Jong said she was handcuffed and detained by Israeli commandos aboard the ship "Challenger", and she was not allowed to help a friend who had been wounded.
    "My friend from Belgium, a young girl, was hit by a rubber bullet in her face and was bleeding all over her face, her body her trousers. When I asked the soldiers to let me go and take care of her, to see if she was okay, they cuffed me on my back, pushed me on the floor. Four soldiers were on top of me. When I did not remain silent and said "I want to help my friend. She is bleeding, can't you see she needs help," they tried to get me off the boat and into a small military boat, which I shouted I did not want to do that. "I want to help my friends on my boat". They brought me to the front of the boat, where they hand-cuffed me, put me on my knees and and put a bag over my head to disorient me," she said.
    "I've been afraid. We've just seen military commando's attacking another boat. You see people falling, you see people collapsing. And you see blood everywhere. If you then see commando's coming to your ship, you're simply afraid and very confused. When I was handcuffed on my knees with a bag over my head I could not believe what was happening. You feel that you are in a very bad movie. You think this is only happening in Guantanamo bay or Afghanistan. Not to me. This is not real. I didn't do anything. I am non violent," she added.
    An estimated 700 people from many different nationalities were on board vessels in the Gaza-bound flotilla attacked by Israeli commandos.
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