U.S. Department of State Middle East Digest

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Ecco la solita carrellata di aggiornamenti sulla vicenda della Spirit of Humanity, passeggeri, equipaggio e carico. Iniziamo con le comunicazioni ricevute da Greta Berlin via e-mail:

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http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/mideastdigest/125541.htm 01 Jul 2009 briefing on the kidnapped passengers (with the U.S. State Department). The sheer stupidity of the answer boggles your mind.

QUESTION: Erin Connors from Press TV. Former congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and members of the Free Gaza Movement were intercepted by the Israeli army when they were on a humanitarian mission over there. What’s being done about that? Are they on their way home? Will they be deported? What’s the next step there, and will their supplies ever get to where they’re going?

IAN KELLY: On that last question, I don’t know the answer, actually. I think I have to refer you to the Government of Israel. We can confirm that the Israeli navy did arrest those on board this – the ship which is known as Spirit. We can’t comment on any of the individuals or the number of individual American citizens on board because of Privacy Act concern.

Can you *imagine* what would happen if Iran  intercepted a vessel and/or incarcerated a former congressperson and Nobel Prize winner?

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The Israeli prison guards are denying the right for Mairead to access her medicine. Continue to email and call Mark Regev and Shlomo Dror and express your outrage over the treatment of the FreeGaza21 while they are imprisoned. The women have no access to their luggage or their clothing.

Mairead is fasting, not just for her friends incarcerated along with her, but for the 11,000 Palestinians also thrown into jail, many without benefit of trial.

Hear her eloquent interview with Al Jazeera:

Update on UK Detainees

(anche nel sito del Free Gaza)

Some of the UK FreeGaza 21 detainees likely to be deported Monday, should arrive to Heathrow 13.30 Monday.

We have just heard that at least 3 of the 6 British FreeGaza detainees are being put on a flight to London in the morning, due to arrive at Heathrow at 13.30 p.m.

Because it is a Sunday and we have only just heard this news, we are trying to spread the word as well as we can – so we’d be really really grateful if you could forward this email to your contacts.  Some relatives and supporters will be there to meet them – but we ask anyone in the London area who is able to go to the airport to meet them to do so.

We are currently unable to make contact with the group, who have been moved to cells at Ben Gurion airport detention center. Once we have confirmation that they are on the morning flight, we will post to our website: www.freegaza.org

If you live in the London area, please try and make it down to Heathrow to meet them. We expect to have journalists at the airport to report on their deportation, and we are trying to arrange for a press conference in London for later in the afternoon.

More to follow! …

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Dal sito del Free Gaza (che è possibile seguire anche su Twitter: http://twitter.com/freegazaorg) arriva questa:

Dichiarazione da Tun Dr. Mahathie Mohamad

L’ex Primo Ministro Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad Condanna il Sequestro e la Detenzione di Cynthia McKinney, Mairead Maguire e gli attivisti del Free Gaza Movement da parte di Israele

Dichiarazione di Tun Mahathir Mohamad:
Sono rimasto veramente scioccato quando ho saputo della detenzione di un’imbarcazione che trasportava aiuti umanitari e del rapimento e arresto dei volontari a bordo della barca diretta a Gaza. Il fatto che il governo Israeliano abbia commesso queste azioni mentre la barca e i volontari erano in acque internazionali riflette l’arroganza dell’amministrazione Sionista. Che sia stata commessa con tale impunità, con totale mancanza di considerazione per la comunità internazionale enfatizza ancora di più quanto sia pericolo Israele in relazione alla pace mondiale.

Come ulteriore insulto, il Presidente Barack Obama aveva detto di recente che Israele deve consentire che gli aiuti umanitari siano canalizzati ai Palestinesi di Gaza che stanno morendo a causa della stretta mortale imposta da Tel Aviv.

Chiediamo che il Governo Israeliano rilasci immediatamente i volontari e l’imbarcazione, inclusi gli aiuti contenuti a bordo, incondizionatamente.

Se non dovesse farlo, ci aspettiamo che il Presidente Obama dica la sua e faccia in modo che Israele assicuri il rilascio immediato dei volontari e della barca.

Ci auguriamo che il Presidente Obama sia a conoscenza del fatto che tra i volontari sia presente un’autorevole ex Membro del Congresso American, Cynthia McKinney, come pure il Premio Nobel Mairead Maguire.

DR MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD
Presidente
Perdana Global Peace Organisation

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Mentre queste sono le segnalazioni odierne di Arial:

a) aggiornamenti in http://invisiblearabs.blogspot.com/2009/06/twitter-dalle-acque-di-gaza.html

b) comunicato ebrei contro l’occupazione in inglese
http://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/
c) bocche scucite
http://groups.google.com/group/bocchescucite/browse_thread/thread/206490b5cee97c38/bead2b5909588849?show_docid=bead2b5909588849

d) fonte araba
http://www.arabmonitor.info/news/dettaglio.php?idnews=27627&lang=it

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Altrove regna il solito, assordante silenzio… elena