ATHENS, Greece -- Greek authorities have arrested the captain of a boat that is part of a Gaza-bound flotilla trying to deliver humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory, officials said Saturday.

The 60-year-old captain, whose name was not released by authorities, was being held at Piraeus police headquarters and will remain there until a court hearing Tuesday.


Greece's coast guard said the captain of "The Audacity of Hope" faces charges of trying to leave port without permission and of endangering the lives of the boat's passengers. The latter charge is a felony.

The boat was carrying 36 passengers, four crew and about 10 members of the media. Its attempt to sail Friday night from the port of Perama, near Athens, was thwarted by coast guard speedboats. On the same day, Greece had announced it was banning vessels heading to Gaza from leaving Greek ports.

In Jerusalem, Israel has denied claims it sabotaged ships trying to breach its sea blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Activists have accused Israel of damaging two ships docked in Turkey and Greece that were part of a flotilla attempting to reach the Palestinian territory.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor dismissed the sabotage charges as "ridiculous," calling them "sad conspiracy theories."

Selcuk Unal, a spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry, said authorities had determined that there was no act of sabotage on an Irish vessel in the flotilla that docked in the Turkish port of Gocek on the Aegean Sea.

Israel says it imposed the blockade in 2007 to stop weapons reaching the Islamic militant group Hamas that rules Gaza. Activists describe the blockade as a form of incarceration for the Palestinians.

Nine activists on a Turkish boat were killed last year in an Israeli raid on a similar flotilla.
In a statement, the Middle East Quartet of Mideast mediators -- the U.S., U.N., EU and Russia -- said it remained concerned about the difficult conditions facing Palestinians in Gaza, but noted "a marked increase in the range and scope of goods and materials" entering Gaza over the last year.

It urged those wishing to deliver goods to Gaza to do so through "established channels," which include Israeli and Egyptian crossings.

The Quartet "urges restraint and calls on all Governments concerned to use their influence to discourage additional flotillas, which risk the safety of their participants and carry the potential for escalation," the statement said.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/07/02/greece-arrests-gaza-bound-boat-captain/#ixzz1R15zMnEh

I hope he gets a stiff sentance. I am tired of these idiots trying to piss off Israel and provoke a situation.

Israel needs to just place mines all over the area.

The Hamas boat parade is aimed at loosening the blockade to permit
arms shipments to terrorists. Participants are just tools of the
terrorists.

Nothing positive to be accomplished with this futile political stunt.

I am sure our founding fathers are pleased with this action.

How dare anyone peacefully protest an inujustice?

How dare they attempt to aid the people in the latest version of a warsaw ghetto?

How dare anyone to seek justice?

There is no problem with peacefully protesting or giving aid to anyone!

But this is neither. The Hamas boat parade is the same thing as
helping Al-Qaida get heavy arms for use in killing innocent Americans.
That's not humanitarian aid and it's not peaceful protests.
It's helping terrorists commit war crimes.

There is no justification whatsoever for helping to arm terrorist
organizations like Al-Qaida and Hamas to kill innocent civilians.
It is inhumane and unjust and misanthropic. It's sick.

As we celebrate freedom today and our country's proud heritage of
religious tolerance and human rights, let us not promote arms
shipments to any group of religious hatred and intolerance like
Hamas and Al-Qaida.

It shames me as an american to see the flag flying in such a way. Now I know how the super patriots feel when someone burns it in protest.

I can understand why you feel ashamed, after all in your other
thread you thank people for not serving our country in the military.

http://mingle2.com/topic/show/305689

If you are thanking Americans for declining to serve our country
then it would be perfectly natural for you to feel ashamed because
others choose to actively combat terrorism and defend our freedoms.

But not me. I am not ashamed but proud of all those
who served our country with dignity and honor.

reality is we are giveing them cause to become terrorists.

This is an obscenity. You are justifying the murder of thousands
of innocent men, women and children in the WTC 911 attacks by
saying that they are justified in killing innocent people to
protest our lack of their twisted and abhorrent brand of radical
Islamic fundamentalism.

There is no justification for bus bombings or cafe slaughters or
flying hijacked planes into office buildings. Never. Not during
wartime. Not because they believe in a different God or different
way of life.



No one "deserved" the WTC 911 attacks.

ATHENS, Greece – Organizers of a Gaza-bound flotilla said Sunday they have not abandoned their plans to breach Israel's sea blockade of the territory despite a Greek government ban on their vessels leaving Greek ports.

The campaign suffered a major setback when Greece announced its restrictions on Friday, and authorities arrested the captain of a boat carrying American activists that tried to leave Greece without permission.

However, organizers of the flotilla were trying to maintain momentum with planned protests in Athens in the face of increasing calls for them to scrap their campaign. On Saturday, the Middle East Quartet of Mideast mediators -- the U.S., U.N., EU and Russia -- urged governments to discourage Gaza-bound flotillas that could escalate tension in the region.


Activist Dimitris Plionis said there would be "some action" at the beginning of the week, but he did not specify what the pro-Palestinian activists were planning to do, presumably because Greek authorities might try to thwart their efforts.

"The ban is there and we have already said that we are still considering to sail," Plionis said. "This story is not finished."

Without elaborating, he noted that "ships are free to go to other locations" besides Gaza.

The comment raised the possibility that organizers have debated whether their vessels could declare they are bound for another destination, and then turn toward Gaza once they are in international waters. The flotilla has planned to carry medicine, construction equipment and other aid to the coastal strip.

Israel says it imposed the blockade in 2007 to stop weapons reaching Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules Gaza.

Nine activists on a Turkish boat were killed last year in an Israeli raid on a similar flotilla, and Israel eased its land blockade after an international uproar over the incident. But Israel has pledged to thwart any attempt to reach Gaza by sea, and that aid deliveries can occur through its own established channels.

Activists reject that option, saying Israeli restrictions on the Palestinian territory of 1.5 million amount to a human rights violation.

In a statement, the Greek Foreign Ministry said it banned the flotilla from sailing out of concern for "the protection and safety of human life," while noting the need to lift the Gaza blockade and improve humanitarian conditions there.

"Greece reiterates its willingness and proposes to undertake the task of transporting the humanitarian aid, with Greek vessels or other appropriate means, through the existing channels" in line with a U.N. request, the ministry said.

Members of the flotilla have accused Greece of succumbing to Israeli pressure to block their plans, which had been held up by administrative delays and legal entanglements prior to the ban on sailing.

Greece, keen to boost international investment and ease its financial crisis, has maintained close relations with Arab countries, but in recent years has forged closer military and economic ties with Israel. The shift came amid a deterioration in the Jewish state's ties with Turkey, Greece's traditional regional rival and a fierce critic of the three-week Gaza offensive launched in late 2008 by the Israeli military.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel singled out Greece last week when he praised a group of foreign countries for helping to block the flotilla. In a speech, he thanked "my friend, the Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/07/03/gaza-flotilla-still-plan-to-breach-blockade/#ixzz1R5l7WrmM

They should all be put in jail. Especially the American members, who should be charged with treason.

They are only trying to provoke a situation. Both Greece and the UN offered to inspect the cargo then deliver it if no weapons or banned items are found, which of course was not accepted but the terrorists supporting this flotilla. They want to provoke Israel and frankly I hope they get what's coming to them.

Dude..

He believes Bush was responsible for 9-11..

He's a truther.. HAHA

Oh C'mon. Nobody believes that Bush was responsible for 911 for
Pete's sake!! That's just CrAzY talk!

Yes being I would like the truth.

Why did Bush and Cheneye both refuse to go under oath to the 911 commission?

How were the defences over washington powerless to stop the plane that hit the pentagon?

Why did building 7 fall down?

What were those five danceing Israelis up to?

Many many quistions but few doubt it was used as an excuse to invade Iraq and that is realy what shames the victims of 911.

Thanks to 911 this country is bankrupt moraly and finacialy I suppose any sane person would seek the truth.

Only Jessie Ventura and people who need to be on medication.

I am really worried about you.

hahaha be ashamed then... all those people were told not to do it, but they did anyway... even oberry says the people are stupid for doing it, and he will not seek any further action if they are all killed, which i won't cry if the idiots are... good for israel, keep sinking the boats...

They need to do more then sink the boats. Make these people do some serious time.

so what if the truth is not what you think it is? would you still want to hear the truth then? would you even believe it? or is your hate that much towards the Israelis?