→Israel's response: Israel made it clear that they anticipated arrival even if they didn't make it out of the airport. |
Undid revision 438631399 by Tiamut (talk)if one side is in the lead than the other should be too. Any way to paraphrase it instead of quotes? |
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'''Welcome to Palestine''' is an initiative of 30 Palestinian civil society organizations in the [[West Bank]] to welcome hundreds of internationals to participate in a series of events between 8-16 July 2011.<ref name=Bahour>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/jul/05/welcome-to-palestine-israel Welcome to Palestine – if you can get in]</ref><ref name=BBC1>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-14084547 Israel blocks pro-Palestinian 'flytilla' activists]</ref> According to organizers, the aim is to show solidarity with the [[Palestinian people]], and to draw attention to [[Israel's borders|Israel's border]] policies.<ref name=CNN1>[http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/07/08/israel.aerial.flotilla/ Israeli officials detain pro-Palestinian protesters at airport] By Kevin Flower, CNN</ref> |
'''Welcome to Palestine''' is an initiative of 30 Palestinian civil society organizations in the [[West Bank]] to welcome hundreds of internationals to participate in a series of events between 8-16 July 2011.<ref name=Bahour>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/jul/05/welcome-to-palestine-israel Welcome to Palestine – if you can get in]</ref><ref name=BBC1>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-14084547 Israel blocks pro-Palestinian 'flytilla' activists]</ref> According to organizers, the aim is to show solidarity with the [[Palestinian people]], and to draw attention to [[Israel's borders|Israel's border]] policies.<ref name=CNN1>[http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/07/08/israel.aerial.flotilla/ Israeli officials detain pro-Palestinian protesters at airport] By Kevin Flower, CNN</ref> [[Israel]]i officials described those participating as "hooligans" and "provocateurs", and defended their right to deny entry to troublemakers.<ref name=Kershner/> |
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==Participants and aims== |
==Participants and aims== |
Revision as of 06:25, 10 July 2011
Welcome to Palestine is an initiative of 30 Palestinian civil society organizations in the West Bank to welcome hundreds of internationals to participate in a series of events between 8-16 July 2011.[1][2] According to organizers, the aim is to show solidarity with the Palestinian people, and to draw attention to Israel's border policies.[3] Israeli officials described those participating as "hooligans" and "provocateurs", and defended their right to deny entry to troublemakers.[4]
Participants and aims
Organizers estimated 600 to 1,000 international activists planned to participate, with delegations from France, Great Britain, Belgium, Sweden, Germany, the USA, Japan and several African countries.[1][2] As Palestinians have no airport of their own and Israel controls all the exits and entrances to the West Bank, upon arrival on 8 July in Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, the international activists were to openly declare their intent to go to occupied Palestinian territory to Israeli immigration officials.[1][2] Activists say Israel's prejudicial border policies prompt visitors intending to travel to Palestinian areas to lie about their destination and this initiative aims to draw attention to the right of Palestinians to receive visitors.[1][2] [3]
Those who do manage to enter are to take part in a week of peaceful solidarity events organized by Palestinian civil society groups beginning in Bethlehem and Ramallah on 9 July.[2][4] According to the New York Times, the Palestinian organizers include "well-known advocates of non-violent protest like Sami Awad of the Bethlehem-based Holy Land Trust and Mazin Qumsiyeh, a science professor at Bethlehem University."[4]
Israel's response
In the days prior to the launch of the initiative, Yitzhak Aharonovitch, Israel's Internal Security minister, said those intending to participate were "hooligans", and Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister, said "Every country has the right to deny entrance of provocateurs and trouble-makers into its borders.[4][3] Israeli officials ordered a heightened security presence at the airport.[4] Local media dubbed the initiative a "flightilla", referencing the stymied attempt of the Freedom Flotilla II to break the Gaza blockade, and disseminated reports that the international visitors would attempt to create chaos at the airport.[4]
Israel's Interior Ministry sent a letter with a list of 342 passengers it described as "pro-Palestinian radicals" to foreign airlines notifying them that these people would be refused entry.[5] Airlines were asked to prevent these passengers from boarding, and were warned that if they were allowed to fly into Tel Aviv, they would be sent back again on the same aircraft.[5] Several airlines did as Israel requested, among them Lufthansa, Swiss International Airlines and EasyJet.[5][6]
By 9 July, Israeli authorities had questioned hundreds of airline passengers who had arrived at Ben Gurion Airport, and detained 124 people. Four were deported, and the rest, some 76 women and 38 men, were taken to Ela and Givon prisons in Israel, where Israeli officials say they will be held until they are deported.[7]
Welcome to Palestine representatives in Bethlehem said legal action would be taken to challenge Israel's response.[2]
References
- ^ a b c d Welcome to Palestine – if you can get in
- ^ a b c d e f Israel blocks pro-Palestinian 'flytilla' activists
- ^ a b c Israeli officials detain pro-Palestinian protesters at airport By Kevin Flower, CNN
- ^ a b c d e f Israel Blocks Flights to Protest Gathering
- ^ a b c Israel blocks travelers to stop West Bank event
- ^ “Flytilla” passengers grounded in Switzerland
- ^ 50 'flytilla' activists enter West Bank