Israel’s Victory at Sea

A guest post by AKUS

Israel has three times stunned the world with its ability to thwart the Arab world’s desire to conquer it in a series of grimly fought but brilliantly executed land wars in 1948, 1967, and in the amazing recovery from the surprise attack of Yom Kippur in 1973.

It can now add a major victory at sea to its sterling record, won by diplomacy and brains rather than open battle. Israel’s diplomatic corps sent the right messages to governments around the world of the implications allowing a few dozen “activists” to try to break the legal maritime blockade of Gaza, and the flotilla is, for the most part, beached.

In a unique confluence of interests, the Greeks and Turks both worked to prevent the flotillistas from setting sail. Facing their own problems with austerity riots in Greece and a flood of refugees from Syria into Turkey, the last thing they needed was yet another furious international incident on the high seas. Perhaps their own woes also created a new appreciation of the difficulties Israel faces.

When the US member of the group, “The Audacity of Hope”, carrying 10 journalists and 36 “activists” (think about that for a moment – one journalist for every three or so “activists”!!) tried to sneak out of the Piraeus harbor, they were stopped by a Greek coastguard vessel that took on black-suited Greek commandos who threatened to board the ship if they did not return to port. After a few hours of breast-beating posturing, the activists gave up and turned tail.

Adding insult to injury, the captain of the ship was arrested upon return for trying to leave port without permission and for endangering the lives of the boat’s passengers. Apparently the Greeks were not amused by his Yankee arrogance in demanding, while in their territorial waters, that they check with Delaware to see that his papers were in order. Will America arrest him again once the Greeks free him given that the State Department said that the ship was participating in illegal activities?

So much for Gaza, so much for their willingness to defend Gaza with their bodies. The “Audacity of Hope” became the “Cringe of Nope”.

The pathetic nature of the would-be flotillistas is perfectly illustrated in this CNN clip.

Hedy Epstein is an 82-year old fraud who has made herself into a media star by claiming, or allowing others to claim on her behalf, that she was a Holocaust survivor. In fact, her parents saved her from the Holocaust by sending her to England in the famous “Kindertransport” before perishing themselves in Auschwitz. If her murdered parents had ever had graves, they would, I am sure, turn in them to learn that their daughter “is thrilled to be standing up to Israel”:

“I had bubbles in my stomach. I can’t believe it yet – we are really on our way (to Gaza)”

This was soon followed by her moaning like a hysterical child:

“I’m hurting .. I’m sad …I’m angry .. I want to go to Gaza”.

Of course, she can go to Gaza if that is what she really wants to do – she just has to fly to Cairo and take the bus if the Egyptians will let her, which is also quite doubtful. But what she really wants to do, or has been manipulated by others in the hope of doing, is to stage a provocation and a headline issued by pro-Palestinian groups that reads something like “Brutal Israelis dump Holocaust Survivor into the Sea”

Another of the few passengers was Alice Walker, who showed that she learned one thing at least from Vietnam. When all else fails, declare victory (minute 2:33 of the CNN clip) and fly out. She said she was happy that the Gazans could see that she made an effort, was sure they appreciated it, wished them well, and fled. All that were missing were pictures of other “activists” who left hanging from the wheels of her plane as she took off back to the USA:

ibnezra Joseph Dana

Alice Walker is flying out of Athens this morning and I would assume that some other passengers will be doing the same.

Of course, the last shot fired by the activists was to invoke Israel’s superhuman ability to force governments around the world to do its bidding. CNN’s reporter solemnly intoned: “The “activists” say Greece is being bullied by Israel”. “Activists” have decided that the rule of the game is, apparently, that Israel is required to submit passively to lawfare and attempts to aid its enemies. It should do nothing to upset their plans nor should it expose their dubious motives. Unfortunately for the “activists”, Israel is slowly learning to surprise its enemies by using skilled legal and diplomatic staff to implement legal tactics and strategies the “activists” are unable to predict or counter.

For lack of action and blood in the water the flotilla story largely dropped out of few serious MSM that even bothered to report it days ago. Journalists left the ships on masse a few days ago, leaving a few desperate “as-a-Jew” tweeters like Joseph Dana and Mya Guernieri to their fantasies. What little PR value was left was brushed aside by the news in the Straus-Kahn case and the riots and financial problems in Greece and the UK. Now even the stories of damage to the ships are starting to unravel. Ha’aretz reports: Turkey probe reveals Irish ship in Gaza flotilla not sabotaged. As has so often happened, all the lies, accusations and conspiracy theories directed at Israel are exposed as time passes and the truth begins to emerge.

The sea war may go on for some time, if the flotillistas can find additional suckers to provide hundreds of thousands of dollars so that a few dozen “activists” can have a nice Mediterranean holiday at their expense, but Israel has clearly won this round.