everything necessary to prevent a planned international flotilla from
reaching Gaza, despite the fact the ships will probably not be carrying
weapons, a senior military source said.
The source, who declined to be
named, said Israel’s maritime blockade would only be deemed legal if it
imposed a total exclusion zone around the small Palestinian enclave and
urged the flotilla organizers not to challenge the navy.
“No
ship will get into Gaza,” the source said, adding that the military had
drawn up new tactics in an effort to avoid last year’s bloodshed, when
Israeli marines killed nine activists after intercepting their group of
six ships in international waters.
Pro-Palestinian
groups are planning a new flotilla, which they say will carry
humanitarian aid to Hamas-controlled Gaza, and hope to set sail this
month. The senior security source said he expected 10-15 ships to take
part.
“I believe that with this flotilla there won’t be any arms smuggled into Gaza,” he told a group of reporters.
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