Quite right, quite right. Israel has placed itself beyond the pale - it’s a rogue state, pure and simple. I for one will firmly be supporting a boycott of all Israeli goods, as is being called for by many in this country. I sincerely hope that Britain follows Turkey’s example, and promptly expels the Israeli ambassador, as a precursor to real sanctions against this nation.
Those who have said that the activists were armed are wrong. Everyone on the convoy went through airport-style security checks before being allowed onboard the vessels. Those who confronted the Israeli commandos defended themselves with sticks, they were no real threat to a heavily armed, well trained group of Special Forces.
This deplorable attack (to use the words of UK Foreign Secretary William Hague) has had a particular effect on me, as one those onboard the convoy was the brother of an old schoolfriend of mine, speaking to another member of the family today, they as to his condition. The family aren’t Islamic extremists - his father is a University professor here in Scotland, and none of the women wear the burqa. None of the convoy were Islamic extremists - they included a Nobel Peace Prize winner, and a survivor of the Holocaust.
Opposition to the state of Israel is nothing to do with anti-Semitism. I support the right of Jews to defend themselves, whether in the Warsaw Ghetto, or against the real anti-Semites of the modern age. I would never have anything to do with the tiny groups claiming to support the Palestinian people who use their suffering as an excuse to broadcast anti-Semitic ideas. What I strongly oppose is the use of disproportionate violence against peaceful civilians by the Israeli state. The Israeli state does not represent the Jewish people, as so many Jews will tell you. In this country for example, we have an organisation known as ‘Scottish Jews for a Just Peace’, which does a lot of excellent work around the Palestinian issue.
