Flotilla of Peace or War?

Israel has blundered its way into another international incident by allowing the extremist organisers of the Free Gaza flotilla to dictate the terms in the bloody confrontation they so desperately sought. It doesn't matter that some of the activists on the mission might have had peaceful intentions, the Israelis must have been aware that the organisers' sole aim was to create a violent scenario even if it involved the deaths of some of those among them who were more than just civilly disobedient. Israeli army video footage clearly shows the so-called "demonstrators" attacking its soldiers boarding the Turkish ship with knives, axes, iron bars and at least two firearms. Earlier, they had responded to Israeli army warnings with calls of "Jihad, Jihad, Jihad." These people prepared their weapons in advance for the specific purpose of precipitating a violent confrontation.

But this is no surprise. One of the main organisers of the flotilla is the radical Islamist Turkish group IHH, which labels itself as a humanitarian organisation but in fact supports Hamas and several Jihadist organisations in Bosnia, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Algeria, Chechnya and has ties with Al Quaeda.

With sympathetic journalists embedded in the flotilla, Israel can expect a pasting from those like Fairfax's Paul McGeoch who has form in this area. Today's Age headline alone shows where that newspaper believes the primary blame lies for the deaths. But will the role of IHH in this operation even get a mention when the events of yesterday are described in our media and will those who report on the violence even bother to watch the video evidence that damns the violent "demonstrators" and their monstrous cause?