IDF Spokespersons’ Unit added that it “would like to emphasize that any organization or country that wishes to transfer humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, can legally do so via the established crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip with prior coordination.

… The army said humanitarian goods found on board the boat would be transferred to the Gaza Strip, subject to authorization. ”

It's almost as if these Gaza activists wanted to defy the IDF and to cause international controversy! But we know better of course. They just want Gazans to starve to death.

It keeps Israel secure and aid flowing. This way any boat that refuses to go through there is advertising it wants to cause an incident.

This solution isn’t ideal for both sides but is workable and can help build longer term trust as well so a good stepping stone.

Also don’t forget that Gaza isn’t part of Israel so comparing Israel’s actions to another country is flawed because its comparing a circle with a square.

I am not sure if under international law a boat going to another territory that has declared its intent as a peace mission can legally be stopped from entering by a 3rd country. Where in the past countries have felt some shipments are a danger they board the vessels in international waters and inspect and allow the vessels to proceed if there is no danger. They do not blanket ban so again your argument doesn’t hold up well to the actions of Israel’s allies such as the USA who have boarded boats and let them proceed when there was no danger.

Except the ones that would be more vigorous: I wouldn’t recommend hiring a boat and trying to deliver unspecified ’supplies’ to southern Iran right now…”

You are talking absolute nonsense. I have said they wanted to provoke and incident with Israel and thats why I feel Israel needed to avoid this.

Its you who isn’t neutral.

Iran is caging its own population and not someone else’s so hence its a different circumstance. Can you Pro-Israel Supporters ever conduct an argument without resorting to Iran or Saudi Arabia or which ever Muslim country it is you want to bash.

Simple common sense tells us that Israel even to avoid too much negative PR needed to handle this more carefully. But nooooooooooooooooo you won’t accept that.

Show me where I said they didn’t have a right to stop the boat and for that matter most people accept they could stop the boat what people are irate about is the manner not the fact it needed to be done.

But you are not being in any way neutral, let alone working towards peace, if you object to Israel defending itself in a way that any other country in the world would.

Except the ones that would be more vigorous: I wouldn’t recommend hiring a boat and trying to deliver unspecified ’supplies’ to southern Iran right now…

The point is it can’t all be about Israel and it can’t all be about the Palestinians. The reason we are where we are is because both sides want to crush the other and neither can.

Again in your world view you fail to realise that Israel has responsibilities much like the responsibilities that you say the Palestinians have and dare I say the international community have.

You are trying desperately to justify Israel’s position but where has it got Israel?

The only way to end this is to negotiate and thats the one thing that isn’t happening.

It isn’t going to be easy but you can’t derail or stop it because some nutjobs want to bomb their way to victory.

Why keep saying we don’t want to control the lives of Palestinians and then do everything to control the lives of Palestinians?!!

There is now a drive for peace and we should support that and highlight the stupidity of each sides actions. We should be critical of both sides and not justify stupidity.

What Israel did was unnecessary and there can’t be many reasons to defend it unless one is an apologist for any action of either side.

Look lets be clear these people were out to provoke a reaction from Israel and it gets publicity to highlight the plight of the people in Gaza who are being forced to live in disgusting circumstances.

So yes they got what they want and again people are reminded of Israel’s actions.

Israel could have and should work with the international community to alleviate the desperate plight of the Palestinians.

Continually denying what is going on doesn’t help end the bitter hatred that is being built up.

Both sides are wrong but don’t blame people for highlighting what is going on.

Israel has a responsibility as well as the gatekeeper to ensure that ordinary civilians are able to exist and denying Israel is faultless or Hamas is faultless is why both sides are able to carry on with a policy that makes no sense.

You say we shouldn’t support Hamas but if both sides are being stupid why support either?????

Except when Israel’s military do the same as any other military in the world, it creates such an hysteria amongst lefties that they begin to believe that the IDF have committed a war-crime! Twitter was in lefty outrage meltdown.”

Evangelical Marvin do you not comprehend that this course of action didn’t do Israel any favours and its approach though applauded by the likes of you and the right whom you never criticise does not achieve anything.

If anything it will encourage more missions of a similar nature.

Fact is that you right wingers will never criticise Israel except to say it didn’t use enough force.

By surrounding the boat and forcing it to ram an Israeli Navy vessel would have stood Israel in better position to justify its own actions.

Also why are you so mute on the rights uncritical support of anything Israel does?

From the linked article:

Earlier today, the Free Gaza movement said Israeli warships had surrounded the Spirit of Humanity and threatened to open fire if it did not turn around.

Draw a diagram, and you can see that if you are moving and surrounded and you don’t turn around, you are going to ram something. Note also that the Israeli patrol boats presumably did _not_ make good on their threat to fire: I wouldn’t want to be the one counting on the Americans (in particular) not to do that.

If you interview the drug smugglers and pirates the RN intercepts, their claims to be innocent traders outrageously assaulted and detained in violation of all international law will be pretty much word-for-word identical with what McKinney & co are claiming.

If you want to stop a boat going somewhere, without shooting, you have to put a ship between it and where it wants to go. If it doesn’t change course, who rams who becomes an inherently political question.

Arms embargoes have a somewhat ambiguous status under international law, but I don’t think Hamas should be the group anyone should be picking to support in pushing the boundaries of the issue.

What good did the current course of action do Israel?

None, obviously: it wasn’t initiated by Israel. A better question is what good does such attempts do to those who did plan them?

Can you really see a scenario where:

1. Israel is persuaded by Amnesty to stop inspecting boats
2. Hamas get better weapons
3. more Israelis get bombed.
4.
5. Enlightenment, peace and prosperity spread across the whole middle east?

Because if so, I’d like to know a few more details about step 4…

Military of any country in the world take a somewhat aggressive action against such a boat. It would be forcibly stopped at least.

Except when Israel’s military do the same as any other military in the world, it creates such an hysteria amongst lefties that they begin to believe that the IDF have committed a war-crime! Twitter was in lefty outrage meltdown.

Are you serious! Any well equipped and trained navy knows how to deal with this. The British Navy does it, the US Navy does it around the Arabian Peninsula.

The Israeli Navy is one of the most powerful in the world and frankly its insulting to imply they cannot deal with this. They can surround the vessel and if it rams them or attacks them then they are justified in harsher action.

How do Navies stop drug boats and capture the drugs? They marshal the vessel using various techniques and equipment. Israel can do the same.

What good did the current course of action do Israel? Most people can see that but not you!

How do you intercept and check a boat that doesn’t stop when asked to?

There are perfectly reasonable arguments, under some readings of international law, for breaking the arms embargo, supplying Hamas with bigger and better weapons.

It is only the claim that an attempt to set up an unmonitored, uninspected supply chain to Hamas has something to do with ‘humanitarianism’ that discredits anyone who makes it.

Anyway lets hope this episode doesn’t slow the momentum for peace which is now building.

I appreciate they are disliked but we should be supporting civil approach to all parties.

cjcjc – Fine the people on the boat may have been in the wrong and they may have been looking to provoke Israel. That doesn’t mean Israel has to ram the boat. It has a pretty powerful navy and it had many courses of action it could have taken. It chose the wrong action which is bringing it disrepute so why take that action.

Israel is being led by an idiot who simply wants to show his macho credentials!!

The boat could have been surrounded and intercepted and worldwide fewer headlines generated.

Can you see what good has come of this because I can’t!

I assume you read the NYT article though?
The ship initially agreed to divert, then didn’t and was only rammed after warnings.

Whether or not you think such a procedure should be in place, that procedure itself seems reasonable.

They are certainly considered an Israeli obstacle to peace.

Its intimidation and it does Israel no favours.

What was the point of raming?

They could have quietly intercepted, checked the boat and passengers and if all was ok let it go on its way.

If its full of loonies and gun runners and this is the policy then why not apply it to settlers as well?!

Again its people like you who egg on Israel to perform actions that do it no favours and then sit back whilst the people in the region pay the price.

But I would ram if I considered them a threat.

Wouldn’t you?