RAMALLAH, July 5 (JMCC) - A passenger on a United States-flagged boat seeking to break Israel's blockade of Gaza, activist Medea Benjamin, writes Monday that the flotilla is determined to sail, despite many obstacles.
Her boat was blocked from leaving Greece last week by the local coast guard and its captain is being charged with a felony.
Although the Israelis know our boats will not carry arms and that we are committed to nonviolence, they have nonetheless vowed to stop us with a dizzying array of force -- water cannons, commandos, border police, snipers and attack dogs.
At least two ships have been sabotaged so far, probably by Israeli agents, and Greek officials are not letting us out -- presumably due to significant American and Israeli pressure.
All this bullying, however, only strengthens our resolve. We may be fewer boats, we may have fewer passengers, we may be threatened with violence, but we will sail.
Also on Monday, a Canadian boat tried to leave a Greek port in defiance of a presidential order, only to be stopped by the coast guard.