Israeli navy boards Gaza-bound boat

19/07/2011| IslamWeb

The Israeli navy has boarded a French yacht carrying pro-Palestinian activists intending to sail to the blockaded Gaza Strip and forced it to go to Ashdod port, a military spokeswoman says.

"I can confirm that the yacht has been boarded and that everything went smoothly, there were no casualties," the spokeswoman said on Tuesday.

There were no immediate reports of any violence as the marines boarded the Dignite-AlKarama yacht in the eastern Mediterranean.

Earlier, Israeli naval vessels had told activists intending to sail to the Gaza Strip to leave the area, according to an Al Jazeera correspondent.

He said a communication from an Israeli vessel told the yacht that marines would take control of the boat if it did not heed their instructions.

The Israeli navy had said it was in a dialogue with the activists on board in an attempt to dissuade them from continuing on their route.

"In accordance with Israel government directives, and as previously stressed, the Israel Navy will allow the organizers and passengers to re-track at any point, prior to the boarding of Israel Navy soldiers," statement said.

The 17-passenger boat had declared an Egyptian port as its destination when it left Greek waters on Sunday, but activists on board later said they were redirecting towards the Gaza Strip hoping to arrive by Tuesday afternoon.

"This 'little' boat symbolizes the determination of the international solidarity movement to break the blockade on Gaza and express its support for the 1.6 million Palestinians imprisoned there since 2007," a statement released from the boat said.

"We're cleaning ourselves up a little bit before arriving. Morale here is like the sky and sea - very good," wrote French activists on board, adding in English: "Gaza, off we go, stay connected!!!"

PHOTO CAPTION

An Israeli navy vessel enters the southern Israeli port of Ashdod in March, 2011.

Al-Jazeera