'Hikacking of unarmed ship'
Photo: AP
Irish group condemns ship 'hijacking'
Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign slams military takeover of aid ship en route to Gaza, says passengers were 'hijacked' by IDF
Israel's leadership expressed satisfaction over the outcome of Saturday's military operation that prevented another ship from breaching the blockade on the Gaza Strip, calling its passengers "true peace activists."
Meanwhile, organizers behind the Rachel Corrie ship harshly condemned the Israeli operation.
Round 2
Amnon Meranda
(Video) This time, operation ends peacefully: Soldiers seize Gaza-bound ship without any resistance on part of passengers, begin transporting vessel to Ashdod Port. IDF official: This is the difference between peace activists, murderers
Dublin-Based organization Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) on Saturday issued a statement on its website, calling the Navy raid a "hijacking," and stating the ship's passengers were "kidnapped" by the Israeli military.
"Just before 9 am this morning, the Israeli military forcibly seized the Irish humanitarian relief ship. For the second time in less than a week, Israeli forces stormed and hijacked an unarmed aid ship," the statement charged.
After the takeover was complete, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "Today we saw the difference between a sail of peace activists, with whom we don't agree but honor their right to express a different opinion, and a hate sail organized by terrorism-supporting violent extremists."
An IDF official said earlier Saturday that "what happened today is the difference between peace activists and murders."
