Turkish Navy to escort next flotilla: PM Erdogan on board

ANKARA: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was considering sailing to the Gaza Strip as part of an aid flotilla backed by the Turkish Navy.

Lebanese newspaper al Mustaqbal quoted security sources as saying that Mr Erdogan was pondering the move in order to break the barrier imposed against Gaza by Israel.

It said that “as part of the open conflict between Turkey and Israel following the massacre against the ‘freedom sail’ to Gaza and the protest sparked in the world, Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan is considering going to Gaza himself in order to break the blockade imposed on the Strip.”

The sources said Erdogan raised the option in discussions with associates.

The report added that the Turkish leader also told the U.S. that he planned to ask his navy to escort another aid flotilla – but officials in Washington asked him to delay the plan in order to look into the matter.

The move followed strong criticism of Israel by Erdogan after Israeli armed forces killed several people on board an aid flotilla Monday, sparking widespread international condemnation.

When the possibility of Erdogan joining a flotilla was posed to Mark Regev, the spokesman for the Israeli prime minister, he said such a move was not a “realistic scenario” and dismissed it outright.

“Some of these reports must be taken with a grain of salt … I am not sure that is a realistic scenario,” he told Sky News.

“I prefer that we sort these things out peacefully. Nobody wants any saber-rattling. It does not do any good,” said Regev.

US President Barack Obama Not Ready to condemn Israel over Gaza ship attack

THE US has declined to condemn Israel for its raid on a humanitarian flotilla headed for Gaza, but said the incident showed Middle East peace talks were needed “more than ever”.

The White House and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton did describe the situation in Gaza as “untenable” and “unacceptable,” but Washington’s reaction to the raid did not match the explicit rebukes of Israel of some of its allies.

As diplomatic fallout multiplied, and threatened to derail a bid to broker Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, President Barack Obama also called key regional power broker, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs was earlier asked directly whether his boss would condemn Israel over the drama in international waters in which nine people were killed by Israeli commandos.

Speaking carefully, Gibbs stuck to the language of a UN Security Council statement issued late Sunday (local time) on the raid.

The statement condemned “those acts which resulted in the loss of at least ten civilians and many wounded”, but did not specifically say whether the Israeli raid or actions of pro-Palestinian supporters caused the violence.

It also called for a “prompt, impartial, credible and transparent” probe into the incident conforming to international standards, Mr Gibbs said.

“We’re obviously supportive of that.”

Mrs Clinton said Washington supported an “Israeli investigation that meets those criteria. We are open to different ways of assuring a credible investigation, including international participation”.

State Department spokesman Philip Crowley explained why Washington thought Israel should carry out the investigation rather than an independent international body.

“These were Israeli forces that carried out this action and we think they’re in the best position to investigate what instructions were given to these forces, how was the situation when they approached the flotilla, and what transpired onboard that ship,” he said.

The deadly maritime confrontation threatens to stymie US peace moves again at a time when the Obama administration has just restarted “proximity” peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

But Mr Gibbs said that he did not think the incident, which triggered global fury, would have “a great impact” on Washington’s ties with the Muslim world, despite staunch US support for Israel.

Israel has blamed activists on a Turkish vessel, Mavi Marmara, for the confrontation, saying its troops were attacked as they boarded the ship and that nine passengers were killed in the ensuing fight.

But passengers disputed that version of events, saying that those on board were not armed with anything more threatening than a few wooden batons.

The showdown provoked a crisis in Israel’s relations with Turkey – once its closest Muslim ally – as diplomatic sources in Ankara confirmed at least four of the dead were Turkish.

It also provoked another diplomatic headache for Washington, as Mr Obama had expended considerable effort trying to maintain good relations with Turkey, a rising regional power which is also key in the confrontation with Iran.

In his call with Mr  Erdogan, who earlier branded the raid a “bloody massacre” Mr Obama expressed his “deep condolences for the loss of life and injuries resulting from the Israeli military operation against the Turkish-flagged ship bound for Gaza”, the White House said.

“The President affirmed the importance of finding better ways to provide humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza without undermining Israel’s security,” a White House statement said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been due at the White House on Tuesday (local time) for talks seen as an effort to move on from recent and rare public disagreements with Mr Obama.

But he cancelled the visit to return home to deal with the crisis. The White House said that Mr Obama’s talks with Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas next week here were still on as scheduled.

Israel’s Dastardly Act of War

The world has witnessed atrocities committed by the Israelis against the Palestinians many times. Many renowned individuals from different countries have raised their voices in response, but no serious action has ever been taken. Recently, Israel proved it’s brazen nature again when it became obvious that its intelligence agency was behind the assassination of a Hammas leader in Dubai. There was much hue and cry, but after a short while the issue died down. This time, however, Israel really seems to have gone too far by attacking aid workers in international waters.

Why on earth would Israeli Special Forces be instructed to attack unarmed aid workers? The answer to this is simple: the Israeli’s are quite used to bullying other countries and getting away with it because they enjoy America’s backing. This time, America has delayed making any statements, which leaves many already with the feeling that the U.S. condones this dastardly act of war as one of self defence – That’s the usual American stance! While the world waits to hear what America has to say, more and more political figures and the world at large intensifies their condemnation.

What next?

Protests are the usual way we show our disappointment. However, this time everything seems to be a whole lot more serious. Pakistan has already called for emergency sessions at the UN and OIC, which is a positive sign. In the absence of a diplomatic channel, Pakistan still has to communicate with Israel for the sake of its citizens being held hostage. In order to do so, countries that have diplomatic relations with Israel have been approached, and Pakistan now has indirect communication with their citizens being held by Israel.

Israel ought to realize that abducting Pakistani citizens or any other country’s citizens and taking them hostage in international waters is an act of war. Graver than this act itself is the slaughter of at least 20 innocent aid workers on their way to deliver food and other aid to Palestine. Given that Israel has committed blatant violation of human rights and has conducted state terrorism, there are apparently two ways to punish them.

Punitive Action for Israel

Diplomatic isolation is one way to go about penalizing Israel. An alternative measure is to treat them the same way other supposed terrorist states have been treated by America and its allied forces; Israel should be attacked and invaded. However, should we really go for the latter, and act the way America has? Or are we more humane? At the same time, it is worth asking if it is really humane to just accept the massacre of innocent aid workers aboard the Flotilla? Is it really humane to witness innocent men, women and children being slaughtered in Palestine and do nothing about it? Is it humane to go to bed every night with your stomach full, knowing that on average an individual in Palestine lives on only 4 Kgs of food per week?

We need Immediate Action

The international community will take its own sweet time to make decisions about Israel’s state terror in international waters. However, we should not refrain from putting pressure on them to make sure the maximum is achieved. Apart from that effort, we as Muslim nations have a duty to those being victimized in Palestine as well as those massacred in international waters. How we should act is not just left up to our political and military leaders; it is we as individuals who must make sure we put immense pressure on our leaders to act immediately. We Must Act Now!

Our Holy Prophet [S.A.W.W.] said: “When you see an evil act you have to stop it with your hand. If you can’t, then at least speak out against it with your tongue. If not, you have to at least hate it with all your heart. And this is the weakest form of faith.” –Sahih Muslim, Book of faith.