7th flotilla ship boarded without incident, with compliance of crew
After issuing repeated warnings to the ship seeking to break the maritime
closure of the Gaza Strip, IDF soldiers boarded the seventh flotilla ship
without incident.
(Communicated by the IDF Spokesperson and the MFA Spokesperson)June 5, 2010

IDF naval commandos boarded the ship attempting to break the maritime
closure of the Gaza Strip with the full compliance of the ship's crew
members. According to initial reports, there was no violence or injuries
amongst the soldiers or the crew, as the use of force was unnecessary and no
shots were fired.

Shortly before 18:30, the ship docked at the Israeli port of Ashdod, after
attempting to break the maritime closure of the Gaza Strip.

Nineteen people were onboard the boat, including eight crew members, all of
whom will be transferred to the custody of the appropriate authorities in
the Interior Ministry. The cargo found onboard will be transferred to the
Gaza Strip following security inspection.

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson:

Over the past few days, the State of Israel repeatedly called to the
activists aboard the "Rachel Corrie" vessel, offering that they land at the
port of Ashdod, where their cargo will be off-loaded, checked, and
transferred to the crossing point into Gaza - accompanied by representatives
of the activists and the Government of Ireland.

This offer was formulated in contacts between the Governments of Israel and
Ireland. Unfortunately, the activists rejected this offer, and consequently,
the Israeli Navy boarded the ship with full compliance of the ship's crew
members, and redirected it to Ashdod port.

The operation was carried out in a peaceful manner, without incident, as was
the case with five of the six vessels of the previous flotilla.

The cargo of the "Rachel Corrie" will be off-loaded in Ashdod. The activists
on board the vessel will be processed by Israeli immigration authorities and
will be flown to their countries of origin as soon as possible.

During the morning hours a naval force identified the ship and, as it did in
the past, issued numerous calls for it to dock in Ashdod and transfer the
goods via the crossings upon inspection. The calls were ignored and it
became clear that the boat intended to reach Gaza's shores. The Israel Navy
contacted the boat and clarified again that the Gaza Strip was under
maritime closure and due to security risks in the area, it would not be
permitted to enter.

With the compliance of the crew members, the naval force boarded the ship
without incident under the command of the Commander of the Israel Navy, Vice
Admiral Eliezer Marom, directed it to the Ashdod port.

Any organization or country wishing to transfer humanitarian aid to the Gaza
Strip can do so legally via the established ground crossings by coordinating
with the relevant authorities, as is done on a near daily basis.

The closure of the Gaza Strip prevents the smuggling of arms to the Hamas
terror organization and ensures the security of vessels traveling in the
area.

It should be noted that Hamas has refused to allow any of the aid carried by
the other six flotilla ships into the Gaza Strip thus far. Five days have
passed since trucks were loaded with cargo and were ready to enter Gaza.

The rules of warfare allow the capturing of naval vessels prior to their
actual violation of a naval blockade. This is dependent on the vessels being
on their way to a blockaded area, being outside the territorial waters of
neutral states and when there is a substantial likelihood (based on credible
evidence) that the vessels intend to violate the blockade.

Declarations by the flotilla's organizers and their reactions to the
messages that were transmitted to them during their approach clearly show
that they had intended to break the naval blockade, thus allowing for the
steps taken by IDF forces.

Earlier on Saturday, the Israel Navy conveyed the following message to the
7th flotilla ship via radio transmission:

"This is the Israeli Navy. You are approaching an area of hostilities which
is under a naval blockade. The Gaza area, coastal region and Gaza harbor are
closed to all maritime traffic. The Israeli government supports delivery of
humanitarian supplies to the civilian population in the Gaza Strip and
invites you to enter the Ashdod port. Delivery of the supplies in accordance
with the authorities' regulations will be done via the formal land crossings
and under your observation, after which you can return to your home ports
aboard the vessels on which you arrived."

The ship organizers chose to ignore the invitation to dock at the Ashdod
port where the cargo could be unloaded and transferred to the Gaza Strip
upon inspection.

As of 12:00, 5 June 2010, the Linda (original name of the ship which was
renamed the Rachel Corrie) had refused four requests by the Israeli Navy to
dock at Ashdod Port where they could unload their aid materials and after a
security inspection all goods would be transferred to Gaza via the land
crossings.