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According to media reports from eyewitness correspondents, at 4 am today, Monday, 31 May 2010, Israeli naval commandoes dropped from a helicopter onto one of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla ships en route to Gaza. Israeli navy troops used live ammunition against the unarmed civilian passengers during the operation, which resulted in the killing of at least 15 civilians and the injury of dozens of others. According to eyewitnesses, the firing continued after the ship raised a white flag. The attack took place in international waters approximately 70km off the coast of Gaza.
Last night, 30 May, Adalah issued an urgent letter to the Military Advocate General (MAG) seeking assurances that there would be no attack on the ships' civilian passengers and that their telecommunications would not be scrambled. In its response, received by Adalah last night at 21:23 hours, the International Office of the MAG stated that the Israeli army would not reveal the operational military methods it would use to prevent the ships from entering Gaza. However, the MAG stated that it took the lives of civilians seriously and would take measures to protect their safety.
The Freedom Flotilla consists of six civilian ships carrying around 700 human rights activists and journalists from 40 countries, and 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid and supplies. The purpose of the Freedom Flotilla was to protest against the illegal Israeli military blockade of the Gaza Strip, in place since 2007, by means of non-violent direct action. The blockade has resulted in a man-made humanitarian crisis.
The Israeli military attack violates international law as it targeted civilians and civilian targets, and involved the use of disproportionate force. The Israeli military has censored information concerning the events, including the names of those killed and injured. It also disconnected the ships from communications for various periods of time, thereby preventing the ships' passengers from contacting their families.
Robert Serry, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, issued a joint statement today emphasizing, "We are in contact with the Israeli authorities to express our deep concern and to seek a full explanation." A statement from the Office of the EU High Representative asserted, "On behalf of the EU, [Catherine Ashton] demands a full enquiry about the circumstances in which this happened."
Adalah urges that an independent, international investigation be immediately opened into the Israeli naval attack on the civilian passengers of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, which resulted in dozens of killings and injuries.
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