Madam, – The Israeli violent attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla is an act of international piracy which the world must condemn and take suitable measures against. More specifically, international civil society and governments of the world that respect and uphold international law must immediately initiate sanctions against Israel to compel it to obey international law. Israel cannot be allowed to act with impunity, and those responsible for the crimes committed today as well as in the past must be held accountable. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The assault by Israeli commandos on the aid convoy on its way to Gaza was an act of war.The reported deaths of people of various nationalities means the state of Israel has now declared war on the rest of the world.
Israel has shown contempt for the international community before with the passport scandal, but this is something else entirely. It must now be declared a rogue state alongside Afghanistan, Iran and North Korea.
Apart from the number of casualties, how is this barbaric act on civilians any different from that of 9/11 ? President Obama must at the very least unequivocally condemn this act and disassociate the US from Israel. Sanctions against Israel should now be on the table, as they would be if any other country committed similar actions. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – In addition to collective punishment, targeted assassinations and forging the passports of other countries, now it is possible to add piracy to the list of crimes the state of Israel has engaged in. It is becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish between the actions of this state and the terror it is supposedly fighting against. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The appalling massacre by Israel of peaceful activists in international waters is pure piracy, and calls for strong and instant action worldwide. Israel, which has got away with far too much for far too long already, must be treated like the pariah state that it is.
The important question is: will US President, Barack Obama, have the backbone to take on Tel Aviv and the powerful Zionist lobby back home? This is his “acid test”. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Recently, Israeli assassins forged Irish passports to gain access to Dubai and what was the outcome? Well, Ireland voted for Israel to become members of the OECD and our President publicly expressed support for the country in a recent visit to New York.
Now that Israeli troops have opened fire on humanitarian aid workers (some Irish aid workers are in the flotilla), what will be our reaction? No doubt Micheál Martin will propose that Israel becomes the 28th member of the EU and I wouldn’t be surprised if Ireland were to award the Israeli Eurovision entry douze points in next year’s song contest. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The murder of unarmed civilians manning a ship bringing relief to the citizens of Gaza by members of the misnamed Israeli Defence Force should be condemned by all people who have a sense of justice and fair play. Apart from that it is an attack on the citizens, some of whom may have been Irish, of countries that are friendly to Israel.
There should be an immediate response by the Irish Government which, up to now, has not even had the courage to punish Israel for its use of Irish passports by its murder gang in Dubai. They did not take the example of Australia and the UK and expel Israeli diplomats.
It surely is time that the Irish Government take action by 1. Expelling the ambassador, 2. Calling for the expulsion of Israel from the OECD and other organisations, 3. Boycotting all Israeli products, and 4. Introducing a motion of censure in the United Nations.
The strike some years ago by Dunnes Stores workers who refused to handle South African produce and the subsequent ban on such goods by the government helped to bring down the old regime in that country. In light of this recent atrocity, a boycott by Irish people of all goods made or produced in Israel would be appropriate. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Using commandos for a police action clearly shows the mindset of the Israeli government. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The Minister for Foreign Affairs is reported (Breaking News, May 31st) to be “very concerned” at Israeli aggression in international waters against a humanitarian aid convoy to a population suffering collective punishment and continuing siege as aftermath to the vicious Cast Lead blitzkrieg inflicted over the new year of 2009.
Perhaps if the Minister had shown a little concern when our sovereignty was infringed by the cloning of Irish and other passports, this terrorist act could have been forestalled. I believe he neglected his responsibilities and he should either expel the Israeli ambassador or resign.
I actually believe he should do both, don’t believe he will do either, and doubt this letter will see the light of day. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – There can be no doubt now about how the Israeli regime views international law and the Geneva convention. To them these are just a minor irritant in the pursuance of total control and subjugation of the civilian population of Gaza.
However, until the EU, the US and the UN Security Council respond to these actions with more than just hand-wringing and empty rhetoric, the oppression will go on. Western nations need to deal with Israel on an equal footing to all other nations and not allow the collective Holocaust guilt to influence how they approach the current crisis.
They need to ignore the disingenuous accusations of anti-Semitism thrown at any politician who dares be critical of a regime that continues to flout international law. Finally, they need to look beyond the naked self-interest of the international arms industry and bring to an end a situation that has far-reaching consequences outside of Palestine. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The killing by Israeli commandos of members of the Gaza aid flotilla on the high seas must be in complete contravention of all international law relating to the law of the sea, and is a gross violation of the human rights of the victims.
Israel, no doubt, will again claim that its forces were acting in self-defence, or in defence of Israeli sovereignty. This claim is completely spurious. Israel does not have sovereignty over international waters: nor indeed does it have sovereignty over the territory of Gaza, or the coast of Gaza. The Irish Government must show its utter abhorrence of this massacre of aid workers by Israeli forces, by suspending all diplomatic links with Israel, recalling our ambassador, and dispatching the Israeli envoy until an independent international inquiry reports on the massacre. Simply calling in the Israeli ambassador and verbally admonishing him would not be a sufficient response. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The fate of the flotilla of ships heading to Gaza, including the Irish vessel Rachel Corrie, is regrettable but predictable. The Israeli authorities stated well in advance that these ships would not be allowed dock in Gaza and the determination of the participants to do just that suggested a violent outcome.
While not impugning the motives of many of those on board, one must question the rationale for such a venture. At any time there are up to 80 aid agencies and non-governmental organisations operating in Gaza. Surely the best way to distribute such aid is through these organisations?
It is ironic that despite all the claims of barbarity by the Israelis, the organisers of this venture are relying on the restraint of the Israelis to achieve their goal of demonising Israel. A similar “freedom flotilla” to the more beleaguered people of North Korea would never be undertaken, as everyone knows the ships would be blown out of the water within 50 miles of the coastline. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – The Israeli Bloody Sunday? – Yours, etc,