News agencies wrote: “Any depictions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) are considered blasphemous by Muslims.â€
The above statement is meant to fully summarize the reason behind the outrage that arises in Pakistan and other parts of the Muslim world whenever a provocative “artist†decides to express his freedom of expression and “expose†Muslims as anti-democratic.
Such a simplistic interpretation of such an intricate issue.
There is no denial — and no shame — in the fact that most Muslims hold their Prophet (peace be upon him) in the highest regard. Despite the continued decrease in the number of faithful in increasingly secularized Western societies, Muslims are clinging even tighter to their faith. However, while the outrage over the latest transgression by some Facebook users may appear as a straightforward news story — that of Western values versus Muslim narrow-mindedness — the true underpinnings of the outrage are suspiciously missing.
The naïve depiction by the Western media makes it easy for “freedom of expression†enthusiasts to condemn Muslims for yet again failing the democracy test.
The latest Facebook episode is a remake of the same old story. Some ill-intended “artistâ€, under the guise of freedom of speech, takes on a confrontational mission, knowing fully the response such an act will generate, and perhaps the lives that will be lost. Muslims, predictably, respond through angry protests, burning flags, denouncing America, Israel, Zionism, Facebook, YouTube and so on. Strangely, the very governments that are considered US allies tend to be at the forefront of condemning the “blasphemous†provocations. Muslim masses are thus exploited on all fronts — by the media, by anti-Muslims, by right-wing forces in the West, and by their own governments.
This, in turn, gives more ammunition to the “Islamophobes†who constantly try to fan the flames in order to validate their racist perception of Muslims. The likes of Daniel Pipes, Alan Dershowitz, and other “experts†invade our TV screens and take on the responsibility of lecturing the world on Islam. They use the same reductionist and racist language that they have utilized for years in the guise of academic jargon.
Why, though, are these “academics†and “intellectuals†eager to discredit Islam? And why are Muslims playing right into their hands?
It behooves us all to remember that some of those who champion freedom of expression are selective in their advocacy. Freedom of expression becomes important when the holiest symbols of Islam are paraded, ridiculed and stereotyped. However, these very advocates are enraged when the opinions being expressed are inconsistent with their own agenda, which is overtly militant and hegemonic, and refuses to take into consideration any honest opinion of Israel and its war crimes against Palestinians. One needs to recall the way that the respected South African Judge Richard Goldstone, himself Jewish, was depicted for pointing out the horrendous crimes committed in Gaza during Israel’s most recent war. More, these individuals seem completely oblivious when Muslims are denied the right to express their own values. When, for example, was the last time a right-wing fanatic stood up for a Muslim woman’s right to cover her hair or face?
It must be stated, however, that discrediting Muslims and Islam is not a random strategy. It is very much in tandem with an overriding agenda that has occupied the thinking of many right-wing and Zionist ideologues for years, especially following the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the rising of anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim fervor in various Western countries. The aim is to dehumanize Muslims, to make them seem less civilized, and thus less worthy of equal human rights. In other words, Muslims cannot be dealt with using the same standards that apply to Westerners, because they have failed to subscribe to Western values. The angry protests in Pakistan are supposedly proof of this. This makes war easy and sanctions morally justifiable.
Why are Muslims playing right into this? Actually, they are not, although it would seem otherwise. The fact is, many Muslim nations are caught between two layers of oppression: That of outsiders — wars and occupation, interference in their countries’ affairs, all forms of humiliation and exploitation — and internal pressures — corruption, oppression and denial of rights, including, yes, freedom of expression, speech, assembly and democracy itself. These rights are also denied by the very countries that are seen as “pro-American.â€
Under these external and internal pressures, Muslim societies embrace even closer their everlasting Islamic symbols. Islam, for many Muslims, represents more than just a way of life and an answer to unworldly questions. It also provides a sense of hope, and it helps to maintain a level of solidarity and societal cohesion. The harder people’s lives become, the more impoverished, oppressed and abused, the stronger their faith grows.
Considering all this, insulting Islam, bashing Islamic symbols and values is equivalent to denying the Muslim masses their last and only chance at dignity and hope.
Those who are under the impression that Muslims are opposed to freedom of expression are only seeing a small part of the picture. Those versed in history understand that it was Muslim advancements in science, art and literature, and their most impressive translations of the great works of ancient civilizations that allowed Europe to bask in the sun of its renaissance.
Moreover, those who are sensible enough to see the big picture will understand that when a Pakistani woman chants, “Death to Facebook†— as pitiful and confusing as such a phrase may sound — she is not actually referring to a social networking website. Far from it, especially since numerous Muslims have utilized Facebook to share their own ideas with the rest of the world. What the woman is chanting against is the manipulation of freedom of expression to further humiliate her people. She is standing in solidarity with European Muslim communities who are under a most intense attack on their civil rights and liberties.
She is angry at the war in Afghanistan, the constant bombing of innocents in Pakistan, the occupation of Iraq, the rape of women and the parading of naked prisoners, the siege in Gaza. She is angry about the Western double standards regarding democracy, about her own oppression and her people’s misfortunes. And so much more.
— Ramzy Baroud is a columnist and the editor of PalestineChronicle.com.
German President Horst Köhler announced his resignation today, putting a surprising end to his six year term in office following growing uproar over his comments defending the war of Afghanistan.
In a weekend radio interview, Köhler insisted that the war was necessary to protect German economic interests in the region, including trade routes.
Köhler subsequently lashed out at domestic criticism of his comments, saying that the media had not “shown the respect due to me as the holder of the highest office of state.†In the end, however, the outrage was becoming a liability to the Merkel government, and he announced his resignation.
Germany’s role in Afghanistan has been a source of enormous domestic controversy, as Germany’s constitution specifically rules out participation in such a war, prompting many officials to claim that it “technically†isn’t a war, and that the constitutional limits don’t apply.
Muhammad Abduh (or Muhammad ‘Abduh) (Arabic: Ù…Øمد عبده‎) (Nile Delta, 1849 – Alexandria, July 11, 1905) was an Egyptian jurist, religious scholar and liberal reformer, regarded as the founder of Islamic Modernism. A recent book titled “Islam and Liberty†regarded Muhammad Abduh as the founder of the so-called Neo-Mutazilism.
Biography
Muhammad Abduh was born in 1849 into a family of peasants in Lower Egypt. He was educated by a private tutor and a reciter of the Quran. When he turned thirteen he was sent to the Ahmadī mosque which was one of the largest educational institutions in Egypt. A while later Abduh ran away from school and got married. He enrolled at al-Azhar in 1866. Abduh studied logic, philosophy and mysticism at the Al-Azhar University in Cairo. He was a student of Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, a philosopher and religious reformer who advocated Pan-Islamism to resist European colonialism. Under al-Afghani’s influence, Abduh combined journalism, politics, and his own fascination in mystic spirituality. Al-Afghani taught Abduh about the problems of Egypt and the Islamic world and about the technological achievements of the west. Under the influence of al-Afghani, Abduh joined the Freemasons and learnt about Muslim classics in the fields of astronomy, logic, metaphysics, theology, and mysticism. Together, Afghani and Abduh helped to establish Salafism at Al Azhar in the 19th century, based on Abduh’s argument that the early companions had a vibrant political form of Islam.
In 1877, Abduh was granted the degree of Alim and he started to teach logic, theology and ethics at al-Azhar. He was appointed professor of history at Cairo’s teachers’ training college DÄr al-UlÅ«m in 1878. He was also appointed to teach Arabic at the Khedivial School of Languages. Abduh was appointed editor and chief of al-WaqÄ`i al-Misriyya, the official newspaper of the state. He was dedicated to reforming all aspects of Egyptian society. He believed that education was the best way to achieve this goal. He was in favor of a good religious education which would strengthen a child’s morals and a scientific education which would nurture a child’s ability to reason. In his articles he criticized the luxurious lives of the rich, corruption and superstition.
He was exiled from Egypt in 1882 for six years, for supporting the Urabi Revolt. He had stated that every society should be allowed to choose a suitable form of government based on its history and its present circumstances. Abduh spent several years in Lebanon where he helped establish an Islamic educational system. In 1884 he moved to Paris, France where he joined al-Afghani in publishing The Firmest Bond (al-Urwah al-Wuthqa), an Islamic revolutionary journal that promoted anti-British views. Abduh also visited Britain and discussed the state of Egypt and Sudan with high-ranking officials. In 1885, he returned to Beirut and was surrounded by scholars with different religious backgrounds. In Beirut he taught the biography of the prophet and he delivered a series of lectures on theology. He published many articles in the Beirut paper and also helped form a secret society in Beirut which was dedicated to furthering respect and friendship between Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.
When he returned to Egypt in 1888, Abduh began his legal career. He was appointed judge in the Courts of First Instance of the Native Tribunals and in 1890, he became a consultative member of the Court of Appeal. In 1899, he was appointed Mufti of Egypt and he held this position until he died. While he was in Egypt, Abduh founded a religious society, became president of a society for the revival of Arab sciences and worked towards reforming al-Azhar by putting forth proposals to improve examinations, the curriculum and the working conditions for both professors and students. He travelled a great deal and met with European scholars in Cambridge and Oxford. He studied French law and read a great many European and Arab works in the libraries of Vienna and Berlin. The conclusions he drew from his travels were that Muslims suffer from ignorance about their own religion and the despotism of unjust rulers.
Muhammad Abduh died on 11 July 1905. People from all around the world sent their condolences.
Thought
Mohammad Abduh wanted to make Islam compatible with nineteenth-century rationalism. According to him Muslims could not simply rely on the interpretations of texts provided by medieval clerics, they needed to use reason to keep up with changing times. He said that in Islam man was not created to be led by a bridle, man was given intelligence so that he could be guided by knowledge. According to Abduh, a teacher’s role was to direct men towards study. He believed that Islam encouraged men to detach from the world of their ancestors and that Islam reproved the slavish imitation of tradition. He said that the two greatest possessions relating to religion that man was graced with was independence of will and independence of thought and opinion. It was with the help of these tools that he could attain happiness. He believed that the growth of western civilization in Europe was based on these two principles. He thought that Europeans were roused to act after a large number of them were able to exercise their choice and to seek out facts with their minds.
His Muslim opponents refer to him as an infidel; however, his followers called him a sage, a reviver of religion and a reforming leader. He is conventionally graced with the epithets “al-UstÄdh al-ImÄm†and “al-Shaykh al-MuftÄ«â€. In his works, he portrays God as educating humanity from its childhood through its youth and then on to adulthood. According to him, Islam is the only religion whose dogmas can be proven by reasoning. Abduh does not advocate returning to the early stages of Islam. He was against polygamy and thought that it was an archaic custom. He believed in a form of Islam that would liberate men from enslavement, provide equal rights for all human beings, abolish the religious scholar’s monopoly on exegesis and abolish racial discrimination and religious compulsion.
The periodic table of the chemical elements (also periodic table of the elements or just periodic table) is a tabular display of the chemical elements. Although precursors to this table exist, its invention is generally credited to Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev in 1869, who intended the table to illustrate recurring (“periodicâ€) trends in the properties of the elements. The layout of the table has been refined and extended over time, as new elements have been discovered, and new theoretical models have been developed to explain chemical behavior.In 1789, Antoine Lavoisier published a list of 33 chemical elements. Although Lavoisier grouped the elements into gases, metals, non-metals, and earths, chemists spent the following century searching for a more precise classification scheme. In 1829, Johann Wolfgang Döbereinerobserved that many of the elements could be grouped into triads (groups of three) based on their chemical properties. Lithium, sodium, andpotassium, for example, were grouped together as being soft, reactive metals. Döbereiner also observed that, when arranged by atomic weight, the second member of each triad was roughly the average of the first and the third. This became known as the Law of triads.[citation needed]German chemist Leopold Gmelin worked with this system, and by 1843 he had identified ten triads, three groups of four, and one group of five.Jean Baptiste Dumas published work in 1857 describing relationships between various groups of metals. Although various chemists were able to identify relationships between small groups of elements, they had yet to build one scheme that encompassed them all.
English chemist John Newlands published a series of papers in 1864 and 1865 that described his attempt at classifying the elements: When listed in order of increasing atomic weight, similar physical and chemical properties recurred at intervals of eight, which he likened to theoctaves of music. This law of octaves, however, was ridiculed by his contemporaries.
Russian chemistry professor Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev and Julius Lothar Meyer independently published their periodic tables in 1869 and 1870, respectively. They both constructed their tables in a similar manner: by listing the elements in a row or column in order of atomic weight and starting a new row or column when the characteristics of the elements began to repeat. The success of Mendeleev’s table came from two decisions he made: The first was to leave gaps in the table when it seemed that the corresponding element had not yet been discovered. Mendeleev was not the first chemist to do so, but he went a step further by using the trends in his periodic table to predict the properties of those missing elements, such as gallium and germanium. The second decision was to occasionally ignore the order suggested by the atomic weights and switch adjacent elements, such as cobalt and nickel, to better classify them into chemical families. With the development of theories of atomic structure, it became apparent that Mendeleev had inadvertently listed the elements in order of increasing atomic number.
With the development of modern quantum mechanical theories of electron configurations within atoms, it became apparent that each row (or period) in the table corresponded to the filling of a quantum shell of electrons. In Mendeleev’s original table, each period was the same length. However, because larger atoms have more electron sub-shells, modern tables have progressively longer periods further down the table.
In the years that followed after Mendeleev published his periodic table, the gaps he left were filled as chemists discovered more chemical elements. The last naturally occurring element to be discovered was francium (referred to by Mendeleev as eka-caesium) in 1939.
Today I do not only want to speak to my dear people but to all of humanity.
I want to call to the conscience and hearts and minds of the whole of humanity, I would like to share courageously my feelings.
Yesterday, in the darkest moment of the night two bloody attacks occurred.
The first of them was the terrorist attack against our military troop at the Iskenderun Naval Base. In this malicious, vicious attack six of our soldiers died, and they have become martyrs. Seven of our soldiers have been injured.
The second, at dawn in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the heart of humanity has taken one of her heaviest wounds in history. The aid ships, from the humanitarian heart, these flowing aid ships have been hindered with guns, by violence, despotism.
They, who with mercy, compassion and humaneness, loaded onto these ships, they could not reach their place of destination, they were wreaked in carnage.
Yesterday, beginning in the morning hours, armed elements of the Israeli Army stopped humanitarian aid being brought to the Gazan people, from more than 32 countries, with 600 people inside carried by the Free Gaza Flotilla, in international waters, in an absolutely illegal way did they attack, spilling the blood of innocent humans.
At this violent attack, resulting in casualties and persons being wounded, the humanitarian aid ships were seized and sequestered. This inhuman attack against those women, young people, religious functionaries that the ship was carrying, I do one more time strongly, severely condemn.
I have declared in Chile. Here I do stress it one more time. The bloody massacre of Israel, brought against the ships bringing humanitarian aid to Gaza is a massacre deserving of any kind of curse and condemnation. This is openly an attack against international law, against the heart of humanity, against world peace, I say against the heart of humanity, for, on those ships were people from all nations, all religions. People alone and they only were bringing humanitarian aid to those under blockade, embargo, to the people in Gaza. The ships, before they left openly declared to the entire world their cargo, their intention, their mission. As witness to this openly humanitarian aid from the world and our country 60 journalists have entered the ships as well. In international waters, in open sea, this armed attack against 600 people and 6 ships which were carrying aid to oppressed people, poor people, to starved people, to people whose homes were destroyed – this was openly an attack against the basic philosophy of the United Nations.
The ships which set sail, be it from Turkey be it from other countries, were completely stocked to carry out the humanitarian purpose, having aid material. They were, according to international traffic rules, strictly controlled. At the same time on the ships were no other passengers than civilians and aid volunteers. The ships were flying white flags. Despite all those conditions the ships were subject to an armed attack.
As you know we were during that time on our Latin America program. Due to this abhorrent terrorist attack which occurred in Hatay and Israel’s illegal attack against aid ships, we had to cut our work sort in Chile and return to our country. From the very first moment we had been watching the events closely. We have taken the necessary steps, together with our friends in Turkey. Yesterday morning at 6:30, deputy Bülent Arınç, together with related ministers and administration representatives, organised an evaluation meeting in which we have considered the issue in all its dimensions. Our Foreign Ministry, our intelligence units, related establishments and armed forces have been monitoring the issue very closely.
Our Minister of Foreign Affairs and our Minister of Defense, talking on the phone with Israel’s Minister of Defense, forcefully put forth our reaction and sensitivities. And I, together with my ministers, evaluating the events during the entire night, have been continuously in contact with Turkey. On the other hand I have established contacts with the international community and for now this process continues. In this framework, I have put on the table everything necessary to do in all the dimensions of this situation. I urgently I did the steps necessary. The Republic of Turkey is using all possibilities, every chance made available by international law and diplomacy. And Turkey will keep using it. In this framework, Turkey’s ambassador to Tel Aviv has been called back. Three joint military operations which were on the agenda have been cancelled. Our Minister of Foreign Affairs went to New York and The UN Security Council has been called for an urgent meeting and it was ensured that there would be an urgent, extraordinary meeting. The UN Security Council has made a statement condemning Israel. It has been pointed out in the statement the need to open an investigation, to set free immediately the civilians and the injured. The matches of our youth football team have been cancelled. NATO’s Council has been called for an extraordinary meeting. Furthermore, the Organisation of Islamic Conference, the Arab League, European Union and all related establishments have been contacted, international institutions have been called to duty. The Organisation of Islamic Conference will hold a meeting on Monday.
Primarily, the safety and security of the convoy and our citizens in the convoy has to be ensured. Necessities to ensure the treatment of the injured are being taken care of. Israel has said: "Let us send the injured to you." We have replied that we have the will and power to take our injured ourselves, and we have refused this offer. Two military ambulance aircrafts have taken off to bring our injured back. And now, they shall be taking our injured, and then returning to this destination. With civil aircraft the Ministry of Health is about to arrive there. To the Israeli Ambassador, who was summoned to the Foreign Ministry, a call was made to demand the immediate return of the citizens of the Turkish Republic, and setting the captured ships free.
Further, all efforts to attend to the treatment of the injured, bringing them to Turkey, have been made and in our country all measures have been taken. Israel, hindering the international community’s access to information from the first moment of the incident, now must inform the world public opinion in a truthful way, and must not refrain from international cooperation. Israel must understand the seriousness of the situation and must stop committing actions such as this that are wrong. Israel’s attitude at this stage is being watched by the world’s people, the public opinion is forming its views. Those who are affiliated with the effort are in touch and are coordinating with the countries whose citizens are in the flotilla.
The ships fly the flags of Turkey, Greece and the Comore Islands, there are people from 32 countries involved. I expect those countries, too, to show the necessary reaction and sensitivity. Thus I once again express that Israel must immediately lift the inhuman embargo against Gaza. [15 seconds applause]. Israel must not hinder that the humanitarian aid reaches its destination.
Dear comrades, as you know do we prosecute together with Spain the Alliance of Civilisations’ work. Our goal and mission is to reinforce the conviction that different religions, different civilisations and cultures can live in peace and tolerance together. It is a struggle so that instead of hatred and animosity, love will dominate.
Regrettably I must say, the incidents which occurred yesterday, in terms of humanity’s collective civilisation and culture have been a black mark. In terms of history of humanity this has been recorded as a major shame. Attacking humanitarian aid ships with arms, to massacre innocent people, treating civilians as terrorists is in terms of humanity a great defeat. A despicably cowardly and vicious act of presumption that is recklessness and dauntless. [20 seconds applause].
We know, war as well as peace has its laws. In war you do not attack children, in war you do not attack women, old people, in war you do not attack civilians or religious functionaries, in war you do not attack those who are hoisting the white flag, health and rescue personnel; not in wartime, but in peace time, those who do these things not only violate the law, at the same time they trample humanity under their feet, they abandon humanity.
Despots, gangsters even pirates have specific sensitiveness, follow some specific morals. Those who do not follow any morality or ethics, those who do not act with any sensitivity, to call them such names would even be a compliment to them. Israel has, by attacking a ship with volunteers from 32 countries, in fact defied the world. World peace has been deeply wounded. This brazen, irresponsible, reckless government that recognises no law and tramples on any kind of humanitarian virtue, this attack of the Israeli government by all means – but by all means, must be punished.
A government, having made lying its state policy and does not blush on account of the crime it commits, instead of expecting them to open an investigation, the international community must investigate this incident in all its dimensions and must give the legal response.
The State of Turkey won’t be satisfied only by watching this. Turkey is not an adolescent, rootless state. It is in no way a tribal State! No one should attempt to play around with this nation, to test the patience of Turkey. As precious as Turkey’s partnership is, so harsh will be her hostility.
Losing Turkey’s friendship and partnership is a price itself to pay. We have always been in a historical friendship and collaboration with the Israeli and Jewish people. I do so believe, those Israeli people who watched this bloody attack in tears, who strongly criticise it, do understand very well that this incident does not befit human dignity, is a great mistake, how a heavy hit strike it has been to the friendship of both countries.
The issue is not a matter between Turkey and Israel. The issue is Israel’s present lawlessness, and recognising the present government’s inhuman practices, using violence, spilling blood, showing approaches that threaten peace.
Turkey has always been, in the Middle East, on the side of peace. She has contributed to regional stability and security. In the recent past, for Israel’s relations with Palestine, Syria and Lebanon to be normalized, the country contributing was also Turkey. Israel now is showing attitudes, taking the most important peace defender in the region, and opposing her. Israel from now on, must give up the carelessness it shows in explaingin the injustice being practised with their justifications about security, criticism that they call anti-semitism.
There is an understanding where violence is its policy, Israel sees that it is licit for itself to oppress, tyrannize, maltreat and she does not hesitate to shed blood. There is no longer any way for the illegal actions of Israel to be covered, to be misinterpreted intentionally, to be ignored. The time has come for the International community to say: STOP!
It is Israel who does not recognise over 100 UN Security Council resolutions against her. So, the United Nations cannot be content with the condemnation decision it has taken last night.
I just talked to the General Secretary of the United Nations. He is also coming to New York. And this evening at 8 o’clock Mr. Obama said he would, I will also talk to him. I declare here that I will share precisely these issues with them.
Israel’s aggressive manner doubtlessly takes its source from the power they get from elsewhere. At this point, as Turkey our precision is obvious. And I talked yesterday from Chile with one of United Nations Security Council permanent members, Mrs. Merkel. I spoke with others today. I talked to England’s new Prime Minister, he called as well, I am also going to talk to him, I called him earlier and we talked, today we will discuss this again. And with the others we will also talk.
We cannot leave Israel with what they have done, alone. We cannot say to the Israeli government, all you do will go to your advantage. Everything has a price. And this government will have to pay for this.
For this kind of comprehension that does not show respect for human life, that they find it impossible to esteem any right and law, we cannot have a peaceful attitude, my comrades.
It is impossible to support a comprehension that does not esteem and respect the human and human rights.
A State considering the security of its own people cannot achieve this by obtaining the hate and hostility of the whole world with their actions.
An administration that does not esteem others as humans except its own people cannot have a concern called peace.
Israel has been destroying her defense shields one by one, losing one by one her alliance points, isolating herself. The Israeli administration, generating grudges and hatred in the Middle East, is setting dynamite off in regional peace, as an instability is spreading, Pandora’s Box comes out like iodine.
The international community must immediately take action.
I also want to call to the Israeli people from here. We have always been against anti-semitism. We have raised our voice against the injustice against the Jewish people. We have contributed so that the Israeli people can live in peace and security in the Middle East. Now, as the Israeli people it is your turn to show the same sensitive attitude, the same humane attitude, to say, “Stop these cruelties being done.â€
The policy of violence shown by the coalition of the government, violating any kind of right and law, is totally putting Israel’s interests aside. Is clearly putting your peace and security at risk. Due to the aggressive attitude of your government, the State of Israel assumes a piracy position, engaging in banditry.
Those reckless administrators, thinking that they, with lies, deceit, shedding blood, aggressiveness, piracy, using state terrorism, the massacre of innocent people do govern a State. But those reckless politicians primarily do evil to Israel and the Israeli people.
Before all else you must say stop to this situation. By the way, I thank the Turkish Jewish Community, putting in words their right and sincere reaction to the event. Our Jewish citizens have, as members of the Turkish people, defended, and continue to defend the right position of Turkey to the utmost.
Looking with hatred upon our Jewish citizens or being in any other different manner by anyone is not acceptable, it cannot be and should never be.
Dear brothers, sisters, today is a new day. Today is a new beginnig, a birth. Nothing will be like before, this is clearly apparent. An aggressive State which openly murders, massacres, cannot explain itself to humanity without regretting, without being held to account for it, cannot stand in the face of the international community.
Those ships were all ships of mercy. And their cargo was the heart of humanity.
72 miles far from their own waters, entirely in open sea and international waters, Israel carried out an operation on a ship, a civil ship, not a military ship, one is not allowed even do this at all. To make an operation on a civil ship, even the capture of the passengers is itself a crime. Attacking innocent people with arms, to shed blood, and to massacre is clearly state terrorism. They deny, they say that they were shot at. We are sick of your lies, we are sick. Be honest, honest, be honest.
The captured ships, together with the staff and volunteers immediately must be released. With the volunteers (activists) and Members of the European Parliament, 60 journalists, with his mother on board, the one yeare old infant Kaan, who was released, on the ships, no one has the right to show those ships as if they had any other intention, purpose, mission than to deliver humanitarian aid. This attack has one more time clearly proved the inhuman oppression and cruelty Israel for years has been using regarding Palestine and Gaza.
I have said it once before. The Israeli administrators, whom we told into their face how well they know to murder, have one more time shown the world how good they indeed are in massacre. A comprehension, handcuffing even heavily wounded innocent people they have shot at. Hey! Can there be an explanation for his? Lying on the stretcher, wounded, you even handcuff him! Can that be explained with human rights, with universal values? It is no longer possible to tell the world how much those were shown humanity.
All people of the earth condemn this clear cruelty, I know this. But it is not enough anymore to only condemn, we have to obtain results.
All people on earth who want justice on earth, one day not power but justice will dominate, you should know that, I want this.
Turkey will use all opportunities that international law allows. At this course we will move together with the international community. I want all humanity to attract attention to this issue. With her blood-shedding policy Israel cannot legitimate this illegal, this bloody murder with any excuse, she cannot explain it.
Israel, with no excuse, no reason can wash the blood on her hands. The issue, case created by the bloody attack in the Mediterrenean Sea, is not the problem between two countries but the problem of the entire world. I believe that no country considering humane values and virtues, no international institution will just watch a murder of these dimensions.
From now on, whoever shuts their eyes to the bloody attacks of Israel, whoever ignores them, should know, they are accomplices of these murders. It has been understood that the matter is not a matter of defending against terrorism, that the matter is not struggle against terrorism, but that the matter is an effort of a massacre towards a city, towards all people of a city, in order to completely exterminate them, has one more time been proven with this last incident that occurred.
You throw bombs on these people, you try phosphorous bombs on these people, you bomb hospitals, you bomb mosques, you attack schools, you bomb playgrounds, you even aim at the UN Office, as if this illegality was not enough, you also cut off all kinds of needs of those people.
And after all of this, you won’t withhold the aid volunteers who try to deliver to these people medicine, food, construction materials, to feel your inhuman savagery.
Anyone, everyone can condone, tolerate this illegality. I opnely say, stressing it, insidiously can support it, but Israel should not make the mistake of comparing Turkey with others. Such a mistake will have a very high price.
Israel, who shot a bullet on innocence and mercy, has chosen with this murder in the open sea, solitariness against the whole world. Has chosen to be isolated.
I say it one more time. If everyone keeps silent, if all shut their eyes, if all turn their backs; we, as Turkey, we won’t turn our back to Palestine, to the Palestinian people, to Gaza. We won’t shut our eyes! We won’t cease crying for Palestine!!!
My dear brothers and sisters, our nation has to be firm. Our people must have dignity worthy of Turkey. We will take it into our hearts. The wounds of our wounded we will all together heal.
We are aware with satisfaction that all around in Turkey our people with a great sensitiveness are watching the issue closely, they are showing their democratic reactions lawfully.
To say it, this is appropriate for our people. I believe that all our citizens will keep their steadfastness, and move in dignity and common sense. Everyone should know and be sure, the love and friendship ships flowing down from the heart of humanity will pass one day all hindrance, barricades and reach their destination.To those who stand behind this inhuman, this inhuman and illegal operation;
As much as you stand behind illegality, we stand behind laws.
As much as you stand behind the bloody operation, aggressivenes, behind terror, as much do we stand behind justice.
As much as you stand against civilians, against the oppressed in Gaza, Palestine as much stand we next to, behind civilians, innocent people, the Palestinian people, the people in Gaza.
We have been honoured having this status through history, we are proud of it, and also from now on we will continue to act and move with the mission our history, civilisation and State tradition has given us.
TURKISH
Bugün sadece aziz milletime deðil bütün insanlýða seslenmek istiyorum.
Dün, gecenin en karanlýk anýnda iki kanlý saldýrý gerçekleþti.
Bunlardan birincisi Ãskenderun’daki Deniz Ãœs Komutanlýðý’ndaki askeri birliðimize yönelik terörist saldýrýydý. Bu hain saldýrýda 6 askerimiz þehit oldu, 7 askerimiz ise yaralandý.
Yükü merhamet ve þefkat olan gemiler menzillerine varamadý, kana bulandý.
Dün sabaha doðru Ãsrail ordusuna ait silahlý unsurlar Gazze halkýna insani yardým götüren 32 ülkeden den 600 insanýn içinde bulunduðu Gazzeye özgürlük filosuna uluslararasý sularda tamamen hukusuz bir þekilde saldýrýda bulundu, masum insanlarýn kanýný döktü.
Ölülerin ve yaralýlarýn olduðu bu kanlý saldýrýda insani yardým gemilerine de el konuldu. Kadýnlarýn, çocuklarýn, din adamlarýn, ve tamamen sivillerin bulunduðu gemilere yapýlan bu insanlýk dýþý saldýryý bir kez daha þiddetle lanetliyorum.
Åžili’de açıkladım. Burada bir kez daha vurguluyorum. Ä°srail’in Gazze’ye insani yardım götüren gemilere yaptığı kanlı katliam her türlü laneti hakketmiÅŸ bir katliamdır. yapılan bu saldırı açıkça uluslarasaı hukuka yapılmıştır, insanlığın vicdanına yapılmıştır, dünya barışına yapılmıştır, insanlığın vicdanına diyorum, zira o gemilerde her milletten, her dinden, insanlar sadece ama sadece abluka altındaki ambrao altındaki gazzeye insani yardım götüyüyorlardı. gemiler hareket etmeden önce bütün dünyaya yüklerini, niyetlerini açıkça deklare etmiÅŸtir , bu açık insani yardımın ÅŸahidi olarak dünyadan ve ülkemizden 60 tane gazeteci gazzeye hareket eden yardım filosu ile birlikte gemilere binmiÅŸtir. ululslararası sularda açık denizde, mazlum insanlara, yoksul insanlara, aç bırakılmış, evleri yıkılmış Filistinlilere yardım götüren 600 insana ve 6 gemiye karşı yapılan bu silahlı saldırının BirleÅŸimiÅŸ Milletlerin temel felsefesine yapılmış olduÄŸu açıktır.
Gerek Türkiye’den gerek diðer ülkelerden hareket eden gemiler tamamen insani amaçlý yardým malzemeleleri ile yüklüydüler. Uluslararasý seyrüsefer kurallarý çerçevesinden sýký bir þekilde kontrol edilmiþlerdir, ayný zamanda gemilerde sivillerden, yardým gönüllülerden baþka yolcu bulunmamaktaydý. Gemilere beyaz bayrak çekilmiþti. Tüm bu þartalara raðmen gemiler silahlý saldýrýya maruz kaldý.
BildiÄŸiniz gibi biz o sırada Latin Amerika programındaydık. Hatay’da meydana gelen mefhur terörist saldırı ve Ä°srail’in yardım gemilerine yönelik hukuksuz saldırısı nedeniyle Åžili’deki temaslarımızı yarıda keserek ülkemize döndük. Olayın ilk anından itibaren bakan arkadÅŸlarımla, milletvekili arkadaÅŸlarımla birlikte geliÅŸmeleri yakından izledik. Gereken adımları Türkiye’de arkadaÅŸlarımla müşeterek atmaya baÅŸladık. Dün sabah 6.30da baÅŸbakanvekili olarak sayın Bülent Arınç, ilgili bakanlar ve kurum temsilcileriyle deÄŸerlendirme toplantısı gerçekleÅŸtirerek meseleyi tüm boyutlarıyla ele aldık. dış iÅŸlerÅŸi bakanlığımız, istihbarat birimlerimiz, ilgili kurumlarımız ve silahlı kuvvetlerimiz geliÅŸmeleri çok yakından takip ettiler.
DışiÅŸleri bakanlığımız ve Savunma Bakanımız Ä°srail Savunma Bakanı’ıyle telefon görüşmesi yapararak tepkimizi ve hasassiyetlerimizi ortaya koyduk. Ben de birlikte olduÄŸumuz bakanlarımızla yaÅŸananları gece boyunca deÄŸerlendirerek Türkiye’yle sürekli temas halinde oldum. Bu arada uluslar arası camiayla da irtibatlar kurdum ve ÅŸu anda da bu süreç devam ediyor. Bu çerçevede yapılması gerekenleri tüm boyutlarıyla masaya yatırdım. Ä°vedilikle gereken adımları atmaya baÅŸladım. Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, uluslar arası hukukun ve diplomasinin tüm imkanlarını kullanmaktadır. Bundan sonra da kullanacaktır. Bu çerçevede Türkiye’nin, Tev Aviv Büyükelçisi geri çaÄŸrılmıştır. Ä°srail’le gündemde olan 3 tane müşterek askeri tatbikat iptal edilmiÅŸtir. DışiÅŸleri bakanımız New York’a gitmiÅŸ ve BirleÅŸmiÅŸ Milletler Güvenlik Konsey’i acilen toplantıya çaÄŸrılarak olaÄŸanüstü görüşme yapılması saÄŸlanmıştır. BirleÅŸmiÅŸ Milletler Güvenlik Konseyi Ä°srail’i kınayan açıklama yapmıştır. Açıklamalarında soruÅŸturma açılması, sivillerin ve yaralıların derhal serbest bırakılması belirtilmiÅŸtir. Ä°srail’de bulunan Genç Milli Futbol takımımızın yapacağı maçları iptal edilmiÅŸtir. Nato konseyi bugün olaÄŸanüstü toplantıya çaÄŸrılmıştır. Ayrıca Islam Konferansı Örgütü, Arap BirliÄŸi, Avrupa BirliÄŸi ve ilgili tüm kuruluÅŸlarla gereken temaslar kurulmakta uluslara rası kuruluÅŸlar göreve davet edilmektedir. Ä°slam Konferansı örgütü Pazartesi günü toplanacaktır.
Öncelikle insani yardım konvoyunun ve konvoyda bulunan vatandaÅŸlarımızın can güvenlik ve selametlerinin saÄŸlanması, yaralıların süratle tedavil edilmelerin temini için gerekenler yapılmaktadır. Ä°srail, yaralıları biz gönderleim demiÅŸtir. Biz, kendi yaralılarımızı alacak iradeye ve güce sahibiz diyerek onların bu teklifini redd ettik. Ä°ki askeri ambulans uçağı yaralıları almak için hareket etmiÅŸtir. Ve ÅŸu anda, oradan yaralılarımızı almış bu yöne dönmüşlerdir. Sivil uçaklarla SaÄŸlık Bakanlığımız da oraya ulaÅŸmak üzeredir. DışiÅŸlerine çaÄŸrılan Ä°srail Büyükelçisi’ne, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti vatandaÅŸlarının bir an evvel iadesi, ve el konulan gemilerin serbest bırakılması çaÄŸrısı yapılmıştır.
Ayrıca tüm yaralılarının tedavileri Türkiye’ye getirelerek yapılması için tüm gereken giriÅŸimlerde bulunulmuÅŸ, ve ülkemizde de tedbirler alınmıştır. Olayın yaÅŸandığı ilk andan itibaren uluslar arası toplumun bilgi almasını engelleyen Ä°srail’in dünya kamuoyunu doÄŸru bilgilendirmesi ve uluslararası iÅŸbirliÄŸinden kaçınmaması gerekmektedir. Ä°srail bir an önce durumun vehametini anlamalı ve yanlış yapmaya devam etmemelidir. Ä°srail’in bu aÅŸamada sergileyeceÄŸi tavır da tüm dünya kamuoyunca ibretle izlenmektedir. Ä°lgili arkadaÅŸlarımız konvoyda vatandaÅŸları bulunan ilgili ülkelerle temas ve eÅŸgüdüm içindedir.
Gemiler, Türkiye, Yunanistan, Komor Adaları bandıralı, 32 ülkeden insan bulunmaktadır. Bu ülkelerin de gereken tepkiyi ve duyarlılığı sergilemesini bekliyorum. Bu vesileyle bir kez daha ifade ediyorum. Ä°srail, Gazze’ye yönelik insanlık dışı ambargoyu derhal kaldırmalıdır. Filistin halkına gönderilen insani yardımların yerine ulaÅŸtırılmasına engel olmamalıdır.
Deðerli arkadaþlar, biz bildiðiniz gibi Ãspanya ile birlikte Medeniyetler Ãttifaký çalýþmasýný yürütüyoruz. Amacýmýz farklý dinlerin, medeniyetlerin, kültürlerin, bir arada barýþ ve hoþgörü içinde yaþayabilecekleri düþüncesini güçlendirmek, kin ve nefret yerine sevginin hakim olmasý için çaba göstermektir.
Ãœzülerek söylemeliyim ki dün yaþanan olaylar, insanlýðýn ortak medeniyeti ve kültürü açýsýndan kara bir leke olmuþtur. Ãnsanlýk tarihi açýsýndan büyük bir ayýp olarak kayda geçmiþtir. Ãnsani yardým gemilerine silahlarla saldýrýda bulunmak , masum insanlarý katletmek , sivil insanlara terörist muamelesi yapmak insanlýk açýsýndan büyük bir sükuttur, alçakça bir pervasýzlýktýr. [20 seconds applaude.]
Biz biliyoruz ki savaþýn da, barýþýn da bir hukuku vardýr. Savaþta çocuklara saldýrýlmaz, savaþta kadýnlara yaþlýlara saldýrýlmaz, savaþta sivillere din adamlarýna saldýrýlmaz, savaþta beyaz bayrak çekenlere, saðlýk görevlilerine, yardým görevlilerine saldýrýlmaz, savaþta deðil barýþta bunlara saldýranlar ise sadece hukuku çiðnemekle kalmazlar. Ayný zamanda insanlýðý da ayaklar altýna almýþ, insanlýktan çýkmýþ olurlar.
Zorbaların, haydutların, korsanların bile belli hasassiyetleri olur, belli ahlak kurallarına uyarlar. Hiçbir ahlak kuralına, hiçbir hasassiyete uymayana bu sıfatları yakıştırmak bile iltifat olur.
İsrail, 32 milletten gönüllülerin bulunduğu bir gemiye saldırarak adeta dünyaya meydan okumuştur. Dünya barışı çok büyük bir yara almıştır. İsrail hükümetinin bu cüretkar, bu sorumsuz, bu pervasız, bu hak hukuk tanımayan, her türlü insani erdemi ayaklar altına alan saldırısı. Mutlaka ama mutlaka cezalandırılmalıdır.
Yalan söylemeyi, devlet politikasý haline getiren ve iþlediði suçtan yüzü kýzarmayan bir yönetimden soruþturma beklemek yerine uluslar arasý camia bu olayý tüm boyutlarýyla soruþturmalý ve hukuki karþýlýðýný da vermelidir.
Türkiye olarak bu iþin peþini býrakmayacaðýz. Türkiye, yeni yetme, köksüz bir devlet deðildir. Bir kabile devleti hiç deðildir. Kimse Türkiye ile aþýk atmaya, Türkiye’nin sabrýný test etmeye kalkmamalýdýr. Türkiye’nin dostluðu ne kadar kýymetliyse, düþmanlýðý da o kadar þiddetlidir.
Türkiye’nin dostluðunu kaybetmek ile baþlý baþýna bir bedeldir. Biz, Ãsrail halkýyla, Musevilerle her zaman tarihi bir dostluk ve iþbirliði içinde olduk. Ãnanýyorum ki bu kanlý saldýrýyý gözyaþlarýyla izleyen, þiddetle eleþtiren Ãsrailli insanlar bu olayýn insanlýk onuruna yakýþmayan ne kadar büyük bir yanlýþ olduðunu, iki ülkenin dostluðuna vurulmuþ ne kadar aðýr bir darbe olduðunu çok iyi anlamaktadýr.
Mesele Türkiye ile Ãsrail arasýnda yaþanan bir mesele deðildir. Mesele Ãsrail’in hak hukuk tanýmayan mevcut yönetiminin insanlýk dýþý uygulamalarla, þiddet uygulamasý, kan dökmesi, barýþý tehdit eden yaklaþýmlar sergilemesidir.
Türkiye her zaman Ortadoðu’da barýþtan yana olmuþtur. Bölgesel istikrar ve güvenliðe katkýda bulunmuþtur. Yakýn geçmiþte Ãsrail’in Filistin’le, Suriye’yle, Lübnan ile iliþkilerinin normalleþmesi için ne çaba gösteren ülke yine Türkiye olmuþtur. Ãsrail þimdi, bölgedeki en önemli barýþ savunucularýndan birini karþýsýna alacak tutumlar takýnmaktadýr. Ãsrail artýk yaptýðý haksýzlýklarý, güvenlik gerekçesiyle, antisemitizm eleþtirileriyle izah etme aymazlýðýndan vazgeçmelidir.
Ortada þiddeti politika haline getiren, zulmü kendisi için mubah gören, kan akýtmaktan çekinmeyen bir yönetim anlayýþý bulunuyor. Ãsrail yönetiminin hukuksuzluklarýnýn örtülecek, tevil edilecek, görmezden gelinecek hali kalmamýþtýr. Uluslar arasý toplumun yeter artýk deme zamaný gelmiþtir. Birleþmiþ Milletler Güvenlik Konseyi’nin 100’ü aþkýn Ãsrail hakkýnda verilmiþ kararlarý tanýmayan Ãsrail’dir. Öyleyse Birleþmiþ Milletler de bu akþam aldýðý kýnama kararýyla yetinmemelidir. Ve bunun da arkasýnda durmalýdýr.
Az önce Birleşmiş Milletler Genel Sekreteri’yle konuştum. O da New York’a geçiyor. Ve akşam saat 8’de sayın Obama arayacağını söyledi ve kendileriyle de konuşacağız. Bunları onlarla aynen paylaşacağımı burada da bildiriyorum.
İsrail yönetiminin, saldırgan tutumları, şüphesiz ki bir yerlerden aldığı güçten kaynaklanıyor. Bu noktada Türkiye olarak bölgemizdeki hassasiyetlerimiz ortadadır. Ve Birleşmiş Milletler Güvenlik Konseyi’nin daimi üyelerinden Bayan Merkel’le dün Şili’den görüştüm. Diğerleriyle de, bugün İngiltere’nin yeni başbakanıyla da, o da aradı, onunla da görüşeceğim, daha önce de aradım görüştüm. Bugün tekrar görüşücem. Ve diğerleriyle de görüşeceğiz.
Ortadoğu’ da barışın zeminini yok etme gayreti içersinde olan İsrail’i bu yaptıklarıyla baş başa bırakamayız. İsrail yönetimine her yaptığın senin yanına kardır diyemeyiz. Her şeyin bir bedelin var. Bu yönetim bunun bedelini ödemek durumundadır.
Yaşam hakkına saygı duymayan bir anlayışın hiçbir hakka ve hukuka değer vermesi, barıştan yana bir tutum takınması mümkün değildir arkadaşlar.
İnsan yaşamına değer vermeyen bir anlayışın, insana ve insan haklarına saygı duyması mümkün değildir.
Kendi halkının güvenliğini düşünen bir devlet bütün dünyanın nefretini ve düşmanlığını kazanarak bunu başaramaz.
Kendi insanından başkasına insan olarak değer vermeyen bir yönetimin barış diye bir derdi olamaz.
İsrail etrafındaki savunma kalkanlarını bir bir yok etmekte, ittifak noktalarını bir bir kaybetmekte, kendisini yalnızlaştırmaktadır. İsrail yönetimi Ortadoğu’da kin ve nefreti yaygınlaştırarak bölgesel barışı dinamitliyor, etrafına istikrarsızlık yayan bir çıban başı olarak kendisi iyot gibi açığa çıkıyor.
Uluslar arası toplum bu gidişe bir an önce müdahale etmeli.
Buradan İsrail halkına da seslenmek istiyorum. Biz her zaman antisemitizme karşı olduk. Musevilere karşı yapılan haksızlıklara karşı sesimizi yükselttik. İsrail halkının Ortadoğu’da barış ve güvenlik içinde yaşamını sürdürmesi için katkıda bulunduk. Şimdi aynı duyarlı tavrı, aynı insani tavrı sergilemek yaşanan bu zulme dur demek sırası İsrail halkı olarak sizdedir.
Hükümet ortaklarının her türlü hak ve hukuku çiğneyerek sergilediği şiddet politikaları İsrail’in menfaatlerini tamamen ortadan kaldırmakta, sizin huzur ve güvenliğinizi açıkça tehlikeye atmaktadır. Hükümetinizin saldırgan tavırları İsrail devletini korsanlık yapan, haydutluk yapan konuma düşürmekte, ülkenizin uluslar arası saygınlığını zedelemektedir.
Yalanla, hileyle, kan dökmekle, saldırganlıkla, korsanlıkla, devlet terörü estirmekle, masumları katletmekle devlet yönettiğini zanneden bu pervasız yöneticiler bu pervasız politikacılar öncelikle İsrail’e ve İsrail halkına kötülük yapmaktadırlar.
Bu duruma öncelikle siz dur demelisiniz. Bu arada olaylara yönelik haklı ve samimi tepkisini dile getiren Türk Musevi Cemaati’ne de teşekkür ediyorum. Musevi vatandaşlarımız aziz milletimizin bir parçası olarak Türkiye’nin haklı pozisyonunu sonuna kadar savundular, savunuyorlar.
Musevi vatandaşlarımıza yönelik kimsenin kem gözle bakması farklı bir davranış içine girmesi söz konusu değildir, olamaz, olmamalıdır.
Değerli kardeşlerim, bugün yeni bir gündür. Bir milattır. Artık hiç bir şeyin eskisi gibi olmayacağı aşikardır. Alenen cinayet işleyen, alenen katliam yapan saldırgan bir devletin pişmanlık dilemeden ve hesap vermeden insanlığa kendini anlatması, uluslar arası toplumun yüzüne bakması mümkün değildir.
O gemiler birer merhamet gemisiydi. Yükleri de insanlığın vicdanıydı.
Kendi karasularından 72 mil açıkta, tamamen açık denizde ve uluslararası sularda bir gemiye müdahalede bulunmak, bir sivil gemiye, bırakın askeri gemiye, ona da yapamazsın. Bir sivil gemiye müdahalede bulunmak, yolcuları alıkoymak bile başlı başına bir suçtur. Masum insanlara silahla saldırarak, kan akıtmak, katliamda bulunmak ise açıkça devlet terörüdür. İnkar ediyor, bize ateş edildi diyor, artık sizin bu yalanlarınızdan bıktık bıktık. Dürüst olun, dürüst, dürüst olun.
El konulan gemiler, personel ve gönüllülerle birlikte derhal serbest bırakılmalıdır. Gemilerdeki gönüllüleri ve onlarla birlikte olan Avrupa Parlamentosu milletvekillerini, 60 gazeteciyi, annesiyle birlikte gemide bulunan 1 yaşındaki Kaan, ki serbest bırakıldı, kimse insani yardım amacının dışında yola çıkmış gibi gösteremez. Bu saldırı İsrail’in yıllardır Filistin’e ve Gazze’ye reva gördüğü insanlık dışı zulmü bir kez daha aşıkça ortaya koymuştur.
Daha önce de söyledim. Öldürmeyi iyi bildiklerini yüzlerine söylediğimiz İsrailli yöneticiler cinayeti, katliamı ne ölçüde iyi bildiklerini bir kez daha dünyaya göstermişlerdir. Kurşunladığı, ağır yaralı masum insanları bile kelepçeleyen bir anlayış. Ya, bunun izahı olur mu? Sedyede, yaralı, ve onu bile kelepçeliyorsun. Bunun insan haklarıyla, bunun evrensel değerlerle izahı var mı? İnsanlıktan bunların ne kadar nasibi olduğunu artık hiçbir şekilde dünyaya anlatmak mümkün değildir.
Yeryüzünün bütün milletleri bu açık zulmü lanetliyor, bunu biliyorum. Ama kuru kuruya lanetlemek yetmiyor, artık netice almak durumundayız.
Yeryüzünün adalet isteyen bütün insanları bir gün gücün değil adaletin yerini bulacağını bilmelidir, bunu istiyorum.
Türkiye, uluslar arası hukukun verdiği bütün imkanları kullanacaktır. Bu süreçte uluslar arası toplum ile birlikte hareket edecektir. Bütün insanlığın dikkatini bu noktaya çekmek istiyorum. Kan dökücü siyaseti ile İsrail hiçbir gerekçeyle işlediği bu gayri meşru bu kanlı cinayeti meşru gösteremez izah edemez.
İsrail hiçbir mazeretle hiçbir gerekçeyle elindeki kanı temizleyemez. Akdeniz’deki bu kanlı saldırının ortaya çıkardığı sorun sadece iki ülkenin değil, artık bütün dünyanın sorunudur.
Dünya’nın insani değerleri önemseyen hiçbir ülkesinin, hiçbir uluslar arası kuruluşun bu boyutta işlenen bir cinayete seyirci kalmayacağına inanıyorum.
Bu aşamadan itibaren İsrail’in kanlı saldırılarına da her kim göz yumarsa her kim o saldırıları görmezden gelirse bilmelidir ki bu kanlı saldırılarda onlar da bizzat suç ortağıdır.
Meselenin bir teröre karşı savunma olmadığı meselenin terörle mücadele olmadığı meselenin bir şehri bir şehrin bütün insanlarını toptan yok etmeye dönük katliam girişimi olduğu bu son olayla bir kez daha ortaya çıkmıştır.
O insanların üzerine bomba yağdıracaksınız o insanların üzerine fosfor bombaları deneyeceksiniz, hastaneleri bombalayacaksınız, camileri bombalayacaksınız, okullara saldıracaksınız, çocuk parklarına bomba atacaksınız, hatta Birleşmiş Milletler ofisini hedef alacaksınız bu hukuksuzluk yetmez gibi o insanları her türlü ihtiyaçlarından mahrum bırakacaksınız.
Tüm bunların üzerine o insanlara ilaç ulaştırmaya, gıda ulaştırmaya, inşaat malzemesi ulaştırmaya çalışan yardım gönüllülerinden de insanlık dışı vahşetinizi esirgemeyeceksiniz.
Herkes bu hukuksuzluğa göz yumabilir, görmezden gelebilir, açık söylüyorum, altını çizerek söylüyorum, sinsice destekleyebilir, ama İsrail Türkiye’yi başkalarına benzetmek gibi bir hatanın içine düşmesin.
Böyle bir hata işlemeye kalkmasın bedeli ağır olur.
Açık denizde cinayet işleyen, masumiyete ve merhamete kurşun atan İsrail bu kanlı eylemi ile bütün dünyaya karşı yalnızlığı seçmiştir. Tecrit olmayı seçmiştir.
Bir kez daha söylüyorum, herkes sussa , herkes gözünü yumsa, herkesin sırtını dönse bile, biz, Türkiye olarak, Filistin’e, Filistin halkına, Gazze’ye sırtımızı dönmeyecek , gözümüzü yummayacak, Gazze için haykırmaktan vaz geçmeyeceğiz.
Milletimiz, Türkiye’ye yaraşır bir vakar içinde olmalıdır. Åžehitlerimizi baÄŸrımıza basacağız. Yaralılarımızın yaralarını hep birlikte saracağız.
Türkiye genelinde vatandaşlarımızın büyük bir hassasiyetle meseleyi yakından takip ettiğini, demokratik tepkisini hukuk içinde ortaya koyduğunu memnuniyetle müşahede ediyoruz.
Doğrusu, insanımıza yakışan davranış tarzı da budur. Bütün vatandaşlarımızın metanetini koruyacağına, vakar ve sağduyu içinde hareket etmeyi sürdüreceğine inanıyorum. Herkes bilsin ve emin olsun ki insanlığın vicdanından süzülen sevgi ve dostluk gemileri bir gün bütün engelleri aşarak menziline ulaşacaktır.
Bu insanlık dışı, bu insanlık dışı ve hukuk dışı operasyonun arkasında olduÄŸunu söyleyenlere ‘Siz, ne kadar hukuk dışılığın arkasındaysanız, biz o kadar hukukun arkasındayız. Siz ne kadar kanlı operasyonun, saldırganlığın, terörün arkasındaysanız, biz o kadar barışın, adaletin arkasındayız. Siz ne kadar sivillerin, Gazze’deki, Filistin’deki mazlumların karşısındaysanız, biz o kadar sivillerin, masumların, Filistinlilerin, Gazzelilerin yanındayız, arkasındayız.
Bu konumda olduğumuz için tarih boyunca iftihar ettik, onur duyduk, bundan sonra da tarihimizin, medeniyetimizin, ve devlet geleneğimizin verdiği misyonla hareket etmeye devam edeceğiz.
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Wrong intelligence, wrong guns, wrong tactics. Israel’s military acknowledged big mistakes on Tuesday during the bungled boarding of a Gaza-bound aid ship in which elite troops killed nine international activists.
Though Israelis rallied to their conscripts in the face of foreign fury, the domestic recrimination — with "Foul-up" and "Fiasco" dominating newspaper headlines — betrayed an erosion of confidence recalling the setbacks of the 2006 Lebanon war.
One commentator demanded that Defense Minister Ehud Barak step down. Cabinet members vowed to investigate, but their insistence that the pro-Palestinian activists had provoked the bloodshed found a ready ear among an irate Israeli public.
The secretive Flotilla 13 marine commando unit was brought out of the shadows to try to explain the operation’s failings.
"We did not expect such resistance from the group’s activists as we were talking about a humanitarian aid group," one unnamed naval lieutenant told Israel’s Army Radio.
"The outcome was different to what we thought, but I must say that this was mainly because of the inappropriate behavior of the adversary we encountered."
Israel’s police quarantine of activists from the Mavi Marmara prevented airing of dissenting testimony. The navy also jammed communications while storming the converted cruise ship.
That did not stop passengers broadcasting a globally viewed video clip that, ironically, helped Israel’s case by showing a clutch of activists clubbing and stabbing two marines.
Israel released its own night-vision mission footage of a half-dozen commandos grappling with as many as 30 activists.
The images stirred undercurrents of disbelief and disgrace in Israel. Fabled for their silent exploits at sea, the fighters who rappelled onto the Mavi Marmara looked unfit for the melee — outnumbered, almost overpowered, though far from outgunned.
Jason Alderwick, a maritime warfare expert at London’s International Institute for Strategic Studies, faulted the marines for not commandeering the vessel more efficiently.
"Success begins with planning and with decent intelligence, and they have boarded such ships before," he said. "This time they didn’t go in hard enough, fast enough and in sufficient numbers to establish overwhelming control."
OVER THE TOP
Some of the troops wielded paintball rifles — non-lethal weapons designed to bruise, beat back and mark suspects for later arrest, but which apparently proved of limited use against activists who had the protection of life-jackets and gas masks.
"It’s clear that the equipment for crowd-dispersal with which they were issued was insufficient," Israel’s armed forces chief, Lieutenant-General Gabi Ashkenazi, told reporters.
There was little question of calling off the raid once the first Israelis were in the fight and vulnerable, though the navy said some commandos opted to escape by jumping overboard.
Israel said seven marines were injured, one after activists pitched him over a railing and two with gunshot wounds, possibly from backup pistols that were wrested away from them.
"A number of the fighters who understood the situation, the threat posed to their lives, reoriented themselves and simply worked with live (ammunition) weapons as soon as they came down," the marines lieutenant said.
Some experts questioned whether a police anti-riot unit might have tackled the resistance with less bloodshed.
But an Israeli Defense official said only marines were capable of the takeover 120 km (75 miles) in the choppy Mediterranean, timed for darkness to surprise the activists and deprive attendant journalists of spectacular pictures.
Barak’s deputy, Matan Vilnai, brushed off the call in the best-selling Yedioth Ahronoth daily for the Defense minister’s resignation. He hinted Israel had exhausted covert means of stalling the Mavi Marmara and five other vessels in a flotilla that sailed for Gaza in defiance of an Israeli campaign to isolate the Hamas Islamists who rule the Palestinian territory.
"Everything was considered. I don’t want to elaborate beyond that, because the fact is there were not up to 10, or however many ships were (originally) planned," Vilnai told Israel Radio, alluding to rumors that some of the vessels had been sabotaged.
Alon Ben-David, Defense analyst for Israel’s Channel 10 television, noted that video footage appears to show marines thwarted an attempt by activists to tie one of the rappelling ropes to the deck, a major threat to the hovering helicopter.
"The outcome could have been much worse," Ben-David said.
(Additional reporting by William Maclean in London; Editing by Paul Taylor)
JERUSALEM/ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey called on Tuesday for Israel to be punished for storming a Turkish aid ship bound for Gaza in an attack that left nine dead and Israel increasingly isolated in the face of international outrage.
Israel detained or deported hundreds of activists who were aboard a flotilla of ships seized en route to the Palestinian enclave which has been under Israeli blockade since 2006.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan urged the immediate lifting of "the inhumane embargo on Gaza," and Cairo announced the opening of its often-shut border with the territory, that is run by Islamist Hamas, an offshoot of Egypt’s main opposition.
The United Nations called for an impartial investigation of the deaths of the nine people, four of them Turks, in the takeover by naval commandos who encountered violent resistance.
"Israel’s behavior should definitely, definitely be punished," a visibly angry Erdogan told a meeting of his parliamentary deputies, adding: "The time has come for the international community to say ‘enough’."
Erdogan’s Islamist views and outreach to Iran and Israeli enemies are blamed by many in Israel for souring ties between the Jewish state and Turkey, once its closest Muslim ally.
The bloodshed also put Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s tense ties with U.S. President Barack Obama under further strain. Netanyahu canceled talks with Obama to fly home from Canada to deal with the crisis.
A formal statement agreed by the U.N. Security Council drew a sharp response from Israel, which said its foreign minister complained in a telephone call with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that it was condemned unfairly for "defensive actions."
At the Gaza frontier town of Rafah, dozens of people raced for the Egyptian border after Egypt, like Turkey a leading Muslim nation in the region, said it would be opened "for an unlimited time" to allow Palestinians and aid to cross.
The move was asked for by Hamas. Cairo, coordinating with Israel, has opened the border only sparingly since Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007.
While Israel grappled with world criticism, its navy said it was ready to intercept another aid vessel that organizers of the flotilla planned to dispatch to the Gaza Strip next week.
Big questions were unanswered: how far Israel could continue to blockade 1.5 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip after condemnation from allies, and how it misjudged the situation and dropped marines onto a Turkish ship where they felt they had to open fire to save their lives.
As the first pictures emerged of a handful of Israeli marines being beaten and clubbed by dozens of activists, it was clear there would be anger in Israel over the mishandling.
HELD INCOMMUNICADO
Activists were held incommunicado by Israel but their accounts began to emerge after some were deported.
"We did not resist at all, we couldn’t even if we had wanted to. What could we have done against the commandos who climbed aboard?" said Mihalis Grigoropoulos, who was aboard a vessel behind the Mavi Marmara, the cruise ship on which most of the violence occurred.
"The only thing some people tried was to delay them from getting to the bridge, forming a human shield. They were fired upon with plastic bullets and were stunned with electric devices," Grigoropoulos told NET TV at Athens airport.
Netanyahu was to convene his security cabinet to discuss the fallout from what Israeli newspapers termed a blundered raid.
Government sources said the ministers would consider whether to allow detained Turkish activists to return home on two planes that Turkey dispatched to Israel.
Obama, who has succeeded in reviving Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations through U.S.-mediated indirect talks, said he wanted the full facts soon and regretted the loss of life.
After more than 10 hours of closed-door talks that gave rise to conflicting interpretations, the U.N. Security Council called for "a prompt, impartial, credible and transparent investigation conforming to international standards."
It also condemned "those acts which resulted in the loss of … civilians and many wounded."
The use of the word "acts" instead of "act" — the term preferred by Turkey — suggested that activists who attacked the Israeli boarding party also bore some responsibility.
Marine commandos involved in the attack pointed to a failure of intelligence.
"We did not expect such resistance from the group’s activists as we were talking about a humanitarian aid group," the boarding party’s commander, an unnamed naval lieutenant who received special permission to be interviewed, told Army Radio.
"The outcome was different to what we thought, but I must say that this was mainly because of the inappropriate behavior of the adversary we encountered."
Some 700 activists were processed in and around Israel’s port of Ashdod, where the six ships of the blockade-running convoy had been escorted.
Among the activists were many Turks but they also included Israelis and Palestinians as well as Americans and many Europeans — among them politicians — and a Swedish author.
The military said the nine were killed when commandos, who stormed the Mavi Marmara from dinghies and helicopters, opened fire in what Netanyahu said was self-defense.
The Interior Ministry said on Tuesday that 50 activists had been taken to Ben-Gurion Airport for voluntary repatriation. Around 629 had refused, and would be held while Israel weighed its legal options. Some 30 were in hospitals with injuries.
Israeli Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch said police were gathering evidence to prosecute activists who had set upon the marines with fists, batons, knives and gunfire.
"All those who lifted a hand against a soldier will be punished to the full extent of the law," he told Israel Radio.
The European Union, a main aid donor to the Palestinians, and Russia demanded an inquiry and an end to the embargo. Netanyahu voiced regret at the deaths but vowed to maintain the blockade to stop arms smuggling by Iranian-backed Hamas.
Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas — no friend of Hamas which seized the Gaza Strip from his Fatah faction in 2007 — called the Israeli operation a "massacre."
(Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza and Yusri Mohamed in Port Said, Editing by Peter Millership)
GAZA (Reuters) – Egypt will open its border with the Gaza Strip to let Palestinians cross, officials said on Tuesday, following a storm of international criticism of Israel’s bloody enforcement at sea of its blockade on the enclave.
The decision, urged by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas against whom the embargo has been directed, prompted dozens of people to race to the crossing point in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah, although the gates remained closed.
Officials in Egypt and Gaza said the crossing would open on Wednesday until further notice — a step seen as an attempt by Cairo to deflect criticism of its role in imposing the blockade.
Rafah is the only point on Gaza’s borders not controlled by Israel. Cairo, coordinating with Israel, has opened it only sparingly since Hamas seized control of Gaza three years ago.
A permanent opening of the crossing, which runs across a stretch of desert frontier riddled by hundreds of smuggling tunnels, would be a major boost for Hamas and a blow to efforts by Israel and its Western allies to cripple the Islamists.
However, a full, permanent opening is seen as unlikely.
Cairo fears such a move would allow Israel to wash its hands of any responsibility for the territory, which the Jewish state captured from Egypt in the 1967 Middle East war and which the Palestinians want to become part of their future state.
Cairo, which made peace with Israel in 1979, also has strained relations with Hamas, an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood movement, Egypt’s biggest opposition group.
"UNLIMITED TIME"
The Interior Ministry run by Hamas since it seized control of Gaza from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in June 2007 said in a statement: "Rafah crossing is open every day from 9 a.m. (0600 GMT) to 7 p.m."
An Egyptian security source told Reuters: "Egypt opened its border with the Gaza Strip on Tuesday to allow humanitarian and medical aid to enter the Strip.
"The border will remain open for an unlimited time," the source said, letting Palestinians enter and leave Egypt.
Aid convoys, to which Egypt has in the past given limited access, would be able to use the crossing, subject to following Cairo’s limitation that only food and medical supplies go in.
"Hard materials" — apparently including concrete and steel which Gazans want to repair damage from an Israeli offensive last year — would have to go via Israel, the Egyptian source said.
Israel has made clear since it halted a Turkish-backed, Gaza-bound aid convoy at sea on Monday that it will not ease its embargo.
The deaths of nine activists when commandos stormed a Turkish ship in international waters have unleashed a widespread furor over Israel’s move. United Nations officials have demanded an end to the blockade, which has impoverished the 1.5 million people of the Gaza Strip. Israel’s main ally the United States has been more cautious in its response to the incident.
After Israel withdrew troops and settlers from Gaza in 2005, the European Union placed monitors at the Rafah crossing to reassure Israel that weapons would not reach Gaza from Egypt. That system of surveillance collapsed, and the blockade was tightened, when Hamas seized full control of Gaza in 2007.
Earlier on Tuesday, Hamas’s Syrian-based leader Khaled Meshaal said: "We call on our brothers in Egypt to use this historic moment to open Rafah crossing. Egypt is able to do this and that would indeed be a real response to Israel’s actions."
Additional reporting by Yusri Mohamed in Port Said, Edmund Blair in Cairo and Tom Perry in Ramallah; writing by Alastair Macdonald in Jerusalem; Editing by Mark Heinrich.
