[News] The Rachel Corrie MV Continues To Sail Towards Gaza In Defiance Of Israeli Threats

[Anti-Imperialist News]

The Lone Ship Of The Freedom Flotilla: The Rachel Corrie MV Continues 
To Sail Towards Gaza In Defiance Of Israeli Threats

By Michel Chossudovsky

01 June, 2010
<http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=19481>Global Research
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=19481

Following Israel's criminal raid in international waters on May 31st, 
the Rachel Corrie MV continues to sail towards the Gaza coastline in 
defiance of Israeli threats.

In an act of tremendous courage, the Rachel Corrie MV is determined 
to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza.

At noon today, I received the following message from Christopher 
Chang and Ram Kardigasu, on behalf of the Malaysian and Irish peace 
activists, who are on board the Rachel Corrie:

RACHEL CORRIE: MV Rachel Corrie is now the sole ship on the 
international freedom flotilla moving towards Gaza.

The Malaysian and Irish peace and humanitarian activists aboard share 
their deepest grief and sense of loss with the loved ones of those 
killed and injured in the illegal action undertaken by Israel on 
Monday 31st May 2010 in the international waters of the Mediterranean.

In the names of our friends, we are more determined than ever to 
continue into Gaza with our humanitarian cargo and our support for 
the blockaded and suffering people of Gaza.

We expect Israel to respond to the international condemnation of its 
violence by not impeding by any means the safe passage of the Rachel Corrie.

We appeal to the international community and United Nations to 
continue to demand Israel our safe passage into Gaza.

Jointly issued by Malaysians and Irish on board the Rachel Corrie.

Sent on behalf of the humanitarian activists on aboard the Rachel 
Corrie - by PGPO land team (Ram Karthigasu and Christopher Chang)

In recent developments, the Netanyahu government is in crisis:

"Senior ministers [of the Netanyahu cabinet] have been sharply 
critical of the fact that the decision to seize control of the 
flotilla to Gaza was made after two meetings of the forum of seven 
senior ministers but without official deliberation by the inner 
cabinet, the body that has the authority to approve military actions 
of this scale." What this suggests is that the actual decision to 
conduct the raids in international waters bypassed the Cabinet. 
(Haaretz.com headlines RSS)

The question remains: if the Israeli cabinet did not ratify the 
operation, who ordered the raids and through what procedure?

What were the respective roles of Israeli intelligence and the IDF in 
planning these raids?

What role was played by Rahm Emmanuel, Obama's White House Chief of 
Staff, who had meetings with both Netanyahu and president Shimon 
Peres, respectively on May 26 and 27?

Did Rahm Emmanuel meet officials of Israel's military and 
intelligence establishment?

Did the Obama administration give the Green Light?

It is important that this news gets out, with a view to ensuring that 
the Rachel Corrie MV safely reaches the coast of Gaza without 
encroachment, with a view to breaking Israel's criminal embargo.

In this endeavor we shall prevail. Our hearts and minds are with 
those who continue to sail on board the Rachel Corrie MV.

It should be noted that Israel has not in any way modified its policy 
with regard to the Rachel Corrie MV: There are two more ships heading 
for Gaza including the Rachel Corrie MV. Israel has promised "to 
respond even more harshly":

"Israel will use more aggressive force in the future to prevent ships 
from breaking the sea blockade on the Gaza Strip, a top Navy 
commander told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.

"We boarded the ship and were attacked as if it was a war," the 
officer said. "That will mean that we will have to come prepared in 
the future as if it was a war." (<http://www.ynetnews.com>www.ynetnews.com)

The Rachel Corrie MV is in part supported by the Perdana Global Peace 
Organization under the helm of Malaysia's former Prime Minister Dr. 
Mahathir Mohamad.

Global Research Director Michel Chossudovsky is a member of the 
Perdana Global Peace Organisation and of the Kuala Lumpur War Crimes 
Commission.



<http://aliabunimah.posterous.com/list-of-passengers-aboard-mv-rachel-corrie-en>List 
of passengers aboard MV Rachel Corrie en route to Gaza


Following is the list of passengers aboard MV Rachel Corrie. It 
includes 2 Irish and 9 Malaysians. Received via Belfast IPSC.

LIST OF PASSENGERS ABOARD MV RACHEL CORRIE STILL EN ROUTE TO GAZA

*Mairead Maguire 66 Belfast, Ireland

Mairead Maguire is a Nobel Peace Laureate (l976) and Co-founder of 
Peace People, Northern Ireland. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 
for her work for peace and a nonviolent solution to the 
Ethnic/political conflict in Northern Ireland. Mairead has travelled 
many times to the occupied territories of Palestine to support the 
nonviolent peoples' movement for Human Rights, International Law,and 
Self Determination of the Palestinian people. Maguire was shot with a 
plastic bullet whilst participating with 
Palestinians/Israelis/Internationals in a peaceful protest March to 
the Wall in Bilin, in April, 2007. Mairead went on the maiden Voyage 
of Dignity in October, 2008, the second successful voyage for the 
Free Gaza Movement. She was also on Board 'Spirit' when Israel 
hijacked the Boat in International Waters, taking all 2l humanitarian 
passengers to Israel, where they were arrested, detained for a week 
in an Israeli prison and then deported.

*Denis Halliday, Manhattan, NYC and Connemara, Ireland.

Denis Halliday was UN Assistant Secretary-General from 1994-98. 
Appointed by SG Boutros Ghali, he served as ASG UN Human Resources 
Management in New York and in mid 1997 to end 1998 as Head, 
Humanitarian Programme in Iraq to support the Iraqi people struggling 
under the genocidal impact of UN Sanctions.

Prior to that, as a development manager, Halliday served UNDP from 
1964-94 in Iran, New York Hqts, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, 
Indonesia, Samoa, New York again and finally as head of the UNDP 
Regional Office in Thailand.

Since resigning from the UN in 1998, Halliday has delivered numerous 
parliamentary briefings, provided extensive media inputs and has 
given public/university lectures on Iraq, human rights, and the UN, 
in particular its reform. He was a visiting professor at Swarthmore 
College in Pennsylvania and teaches/speaks inter alia at universities 
in Ireland, Canada, UK and USA. Halliday is a graduate of TCD, has an 
honorary Phd, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and was awarded 
the UK Gandhi Peace Prize.
MALAYSIAN

*Matthias Chang Wen Chieh 60, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia . Matthias Chang 
is a Malaysian of Chinese descent. He is a Barrister of 32 years 
standing and once served as the Political Secretary to the Fourth 
Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad.

He is the author of three bestsellers, "Future FastForward", 
"Brainwashed for War, Programmed to Kill", and "The Shadow 
Money-Lenders and the Global Financial Tsunami", published in the US 
and in Malaysia. Since his student days in England in the late 1960s, 
he was and still is, actively involved in the anti-war movement 
spanning a period of 41 years. He is a Catholic but enjoins all to 
promote inter-faith understanding.

*MP Mohd Nizar bin Zakaria is a Member of the Malaysian Parliament.
*Shamsul Akmar bin Musa Kamal 46 , Selangor, Malaysia
*Mr. Shamsul Akmar bin Musa Kamal is a journalist for over two 
decades, Columnist for The New Straits Times and The Star newspapers 
and is currently the Special Officer to Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, the 
Fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia. He holds a Masters Degree in War 
Studies from King's College, University of London.

*Mohd Nizar bin Zakaria 41 , Perak, Malaysia
*Abdul Halim Bin Mohamed 29 , Selangor, Malaysia
*Abdul Halim is a broadcast journalist for news and current affairs 
Malaysia TV3
*Mohd Jufri Bin Mohd Judin 33, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
*Mohd Jufri is a cameraman for news and current affairs Malaysia TV3.




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