June 1 Media Reports Associated with Gaza Ships UN: Impartial probe of flotilla raid
— Jerusalem Post: UN Security Council “called for condemnation of the attack by Israeli forces ‘in the strongest terms’ and ‘an independent international investigation.'”
— Daily Telegraph: “UN Security Council has called for a prompt and impartial investigation into the Israeli attack against a flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, and the immediate release of all civilians”
London Times report on passenger list: — Swedish Henning Mankell with eight other Swedes
— former U.S. ambassador to Mauritania Edward Peck
— U.S. television producer David Schermerhorn
— Three German MPs and a Swedish MP
— Britons Peter Venner and Rachel Bridgeland
— Britons Denis Healey, Paveen Yaqub, Kevin Ovenden, Theresa McDermott, Alex Harrison, Baboo Zanghar, Sakir Yildirim
— Irish Paul McGeough, Shane Dillon, Dr Fintan Lane, Fiachra O Luain, “Two naturalised Irish-Libyans and one person of Irish-Polish dual citizenship were also on board”
— “Of the nearly 600 people on the Mavi Marmara ship, roughly 400 were Turkish citizens”
— Turks Mehmet Ali Akdeniz, Demet Tezcan, Şahin İbrahim Güleryüz, Fevzi Çorluk, Abdülahad Abdurrahman, Nilufer Cetin, Kaan Turker, Ekrem Cetin
— Six Greeks
— U.S. Navy veteran Joe Meadors
— Two Australian journalists and two other Australian women
Various media are reporting on violence involving a flotilla of ships in international waters headed towards Gaza described as “aid ships.” The reports describe Israeli helicopters and military halting the flotilla in international waters, and soldiers boarding one of the ships in the flotilla, the Turkish Mavi Marmara ship, during which shots were fired. The IDF reports that the Mavi Marmara ship held “extremists” that sought to attack an Israeli commando who boarded the ship, and took the Israeli commando’s gun away.
The media has had wide ranging reports on the casualties and the causes from 10 to 20 killed, and 60 injured, including injured Israel soldiers. Reports on the tolls include: RT video has reported , Turkey’s NTV states, and The Daily Telegraph.
BBC reports that Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister “Danny Ayalon said it was a ‘premeditated and outrageous provocation’ and the activists on board were intent on violence;” Ayalon described the flotilla as an “armada of hate and violence in support of Hamas organization was a premeditated and outrageous provocation. The organizers are well-known to their ties to global Violent Extemism, Al-Qaeda, and Hamas…”
A Turkish news agency reported that X-ray of items brought on board the ship showed no weapons. In media reports, the Israel government claims that violence only occurred on the ship Mavi Marmara.
The Associated Press reported that the U.S. President Obama administration spokesman Bill Burton stated that it “deeply regrets the loss of life and injuries sustained” and that U.S. administration officials are “currently working to understand the circumstances surrounding this tragedy.”
R.E.A.L. condemns the actions of any individual who claims to be representing a religious view of any kind when they commit terrorism. R.E.A.L. is disappointed in the failure of the Jerusalem courts to swiftly and expeditiously prosecute Yaakov Teitel, and we urge the Israeli people and the Israeli government to speak out on this disgrace.
In November 2009, American Jewish immigrant to Israel, Yaakov “Jack” Teitel, had been charged with murder and attempted murder, as a result of reported “hate crimes” over a 12 year period against Muslims, Arabs, homosexuals, leftists, Jews, and Messianic Jews.
Israeli Haaretz and other media have described Mr. Teitel as a “Jewish terrorist.” Haaretz previously reported that Mr. Teitel’s alleged crimes included “two murders, four attempted murders, four cases of incitement, three weapons violations, four cases of illegally manufacturing weapons, one arson and threats motivated by hate.”
In Haaretz’s report “Cool, calculated ‘Jewish terrorist’ shows no remorse in court,” it stated that the “charge sheet states everything was premeditated,” and that Mr. Teitel stated ‘It is a pleasure and an honor to serve my Lord. I do not regret it,’ he shouted during a hearing to extend his remand, adding that he had no doubt that God approved of his actions.”
Both Haaretz and Yedioth Ahronoth have published photographs of Yaakov Teitel smiling at previous trials.
Photograph of Smiling Yaakov (Jack) Teitel in the Jerusalem District Court, January 11, 2010. (Photo: Haaretz/Ana Kaplan)Another Photograph of Smiling Yaakov Teitel (Photo: Yedioth Ahronoth)
Media Reports and Background:
Haaretz: “Suspected Jewish terrorist unfit to stand trial, evaluation says”
— Israel’s Haaretz news: “Yaakov (Jack) Teitel was charged last November with the murder of 2 Palestinians, 3 counts of attempted murder.”
— Haaretz: “Teitel, a resident of the settlement Shvut Rachel, was charged last November with murdering two Palestinians and attempting to murder three people, including Hebrew University Professor Zeev Sternhell and Ariel teenager Ami Ortiz. Ortiz, from a family of Messianic Jews, was gravely wounded by a bomb packaged inside a Purim gift in March 2008.”
— “In the evaluation, submitted to the court Tuesday, Jerusalem’s district psychiatrist wrote that Teital had been declared unfit as a result of flaws in the way in which he perceived his alleged actions.”
— “It should be noted, however, that the ruling does not affect Teitel’s responsibility for the crimes attributed to him, as he is charged with many separate events spread across eleven years. In order for the defense to claim his mental state affected his accountability for these crimes the defense would have to prove he was legally insane in each one of those incidents.”
— “The evaluation will, however, likely bring about a postponement of Teitel’s trial, until there is an improvement in his mental state.”
January 12, 2010 – Haaretz: “FBI and Shin Bet began tracking ‘Jewish terrorist’ year before arrest” — “Teitel refuses to cooperate with his attorney, saying he does not recognize court’s authority.”
— Haaretz: “A year prior to Yakov ‘Jack’ Teitel’s arrest, the Shin Bet and the FBI were in close contact as part of an investigation into bombings targeting homosexuals, messianic Christians and left-wing figures, Haaretz has learned.”
— “The Israeli authorities considered translating the pamphlets on how to make explosive devices the bomber had made for dissemination to other intelligence services in the hope of possibly finding a link through their data bases.”
January 10, 2010 – Haaretz: “U.S. immigrant gets expulsion order for supporting ‘Jewish terrorist'” “The 22-year-old was vocal in supporting Yaakov Teitel’s alleged murder of a Palestinian.”
— “A young American immigrant was recently expelled from the West Bank for allegedly supporting ‘Jewish terrorist’ Yaakov Teitel.”
— “Teitel was charged in November with two murders, three attempted murders and other acts of violence. The indictment also lists Teitel’s efforts for more than a decade to harm Arabs, gays and lesbians, leftists, police officers and messianic Jews.” November 13, 2009 – Haaretz: “Cool, calculated ‘Jewish terrorist’ shows no remorse in court”
— Haaretz reports: “The indictment against Yaakov (Jack) Teitel on Thursday presented an image of a precise, trained terrorist who operated for 12 years, leaving nearly no trace. Until he was caught.”
— “‘It is a pleasure and an honor to serve my Lord. I do not regret it,’ he shouted during a hearing to extend his remand, adding that he had no doubt that God approved of his actions.”
“Teitel was arrested in Jerusalem in a joint police-Shin Bet operation on October 7. He is suspected of attempted murder, aggravated assault, arms offenses and racial incitement.”
“So far, Teitel has confessed to carrying out the following:
* The 1997 murder of an east Jerusalem taxi driver
* The 1997 murder of a Palestinian shepherd south of Mount Hebron
* Placing an explosive device in the Ramallah-adjacent settlement of Eli in 2006 – the device was found and disarmed safely
* Placing an explosive device near a Beit Shemesh monetary in 2007, which resulted in one Palestinian injured
* A 2007 explosion which took place in the Ramot neighborhood in Jerusalem – a police cruiser was severely damaged, but no injuries were reported
* Hurling explosives at a police car in June 2007 – no injuries or damage were reported
* Sending a parcel bomb to a messianic family residing in Ariel, which resulted in a 15-year-old boy suffering severe injuries
* Placing a pipe bomb near Prof. Zeev Sternhell’s Jerusalem home in September of 2008 – Sternhell was lightly wounded.”
West Bank: “Two Palestinian cars torched, scrawled with ‘price tag’ graffiti”
— Haaretz reports: “Two vehicles in a Palestinian village in the northern West Bank were torched early Friday. The vandals, who have not yet been located, scrawled the words ‘price tag’ on one of the cars.”
— “The incident was apparently carried out by settlers, who have taken on the phrase price tag as part of their protest against Israel’s temporary construction freeze in the West Bank.”
— “A similar incident was carried out on Wednesday morning, when unknown vandals sprayed a Star of David with the name Mohammed beside it on a mosque in the West Bank village of Hawara.”
— “The words ‘Thank you God, for not making me a Gentile’ were spray-painted elsewhere in the village and two cars were torched in another location. No suspects have yet been caught.”
More West Bank Arson - Haaretz: "Palestinian cars torched in northern West Bank." (Photo: Gil Eliyahu)
Multiple media sources have reported on the attack on the Bilal Ibn Rabah mosque in the village of Huwwara and the Israeli military state that is investigating the attack and will bring the perpetrators to justice.
Ma’an News reports: — “After the Bilal Ibn Rabah mosque in the village of Huwwara, south of Nablus, was vandalized by anonymous suspects late Wednesday night, the Israeli military expressed condemnation and vowed to bring those responsible to justice.”
— “The army said in a statement that the Star of David symbol and the caption ‘Muhammad’ in Hebrew were among the graffiti painted on the wall of the mosque. In addition, two vehicles owned by Palestinians were reportedly set on fire in the village.”
— “‘The Commander of the IDF Judea and Samaria division, Brig. Gen. Nitzan Alon ordered an immediate investigation into the incident, condemned the acts and said that those responsible should be brought to justice,’ the statement noted.”
— “‘The IDF conveyed a message to the Palestinians through the Civil Administration to reassure them that the IDF takes the matter of harming or vandalizing of holy sites very seriously. It should be noted that the Civil Administration erased the graffiti this morning.'”
Reuters: "A Palestinian cleans near a Star of David that was painted in the Bilal Ibn Rabah mosque in the West Bank village of Hawara near Nablus April 14, 2010." (Photo: REUTERS/Abed Omar Qusini)
Jerusalem Post reports:
— W. Bank mosque vandalized, cars torched
— Jerusalem Post states that: “On another apparent act of settler violence as part of their ‘price-tag’ campaign, a West Bank mosque was vandalized overnight Tuesday.”
— “The IDF said that graffiti, including a Star of David and the name Mohammad, was sprayed on the Bilal Ibn Rabah mosque in Hawara, south of Nablus, while two vehicles were torched in the village.”
— “‘Price-tag’ is a term used by settlers either to retaliate against government decisions which curb settlement activity or in response to Palestinian attacks.”
— “Brig.-Gen. Nitzan Alon, commander of the Judea and Samaria Division, ordered an immediate investigation, saying in a statement that the vandalism was ‘unacceptable’ and that the perpetrators must be brought to justice.”
— “The army passed on messages via the Civil Administration to reassure the Palestinians that the military viewed damage to holy places very severely.” Ethiopian Review and Reuters reports:
— “Palestinians accuse Jewish settlers of mosque attack” — “The Israeli authorities have launched investigations into at least two other attacks on Muslim sites in the Nablus area since December. They could not immediately say whether either probe had resulted in charges being brought against suspects.”
— “Palestinians believe Jewish settlers were behind both the December arson attack on a mosque in the village of Yasuf and acts of vandalism in a cemetery in the village of Awarta in January.”
— “The Israeli police arrested one teenager from a Jewish settlement in connection with the Yasuf mosque attack. He was questioned and released without charge.”
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Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) supports our unqualified, universal human rights for all people.
Israel – SWC to President Obama: Halt Palestinian Authority Glorification of Terror
— SWC: “For the second time in less than a month, the Palestinian Authority (PA) has moved to publicly glorify mass murderers of innocent Israeli civilians.”
— “Just today, a street next to a Presidential compound in Ramallah was renamed in honor of Yehiye Ayash, Hamas’ arch terrorist and chief bomb maker, whose advanced techniques of suicide bombing led to the murder and maiming of hundreds of innocent Israelis on buses and in bus depots throughout the State of Israel.”
— “Join the Simon Wiesenthal Center in urging President Obama, who has focused all of his recent demands on Israel, to immediately and publicly denounce the PA’s hypocritical and dangerous embrace of Hamas heroes.”
