California Flotilla Activists Blast Israel for Raid

SAN FRANCISCO (June 8) -- Three Bay Area residents who were aboard the flotilla seized by Israel off the coast of Gaza last week have returned home more committed than ever to the Palestinian cause.

The activists held a news conference to criticize Israel's assault on the six-ship flotilla that led to the deaths of nine passengers aboard the main vessel, the Mavi Marmara.

"The actions of the Israelis are absolutely outrageous," Paul Larudee, 64, said Monday.

The professional piano tuner and former linguistics professor from El Cerrito said he was beaten repeatedly while in detention. "This was a humanitarian flotilla," he said. "We want the American people to be equally outraged."

Israel has blockaded the Gaza Strip since 2007, contending that controlling the flow of goods into the 140-square-mile region is essential to prevent rocket attacks on Israel. About 1.5 million Palestinians live in Gaza, and their supporters contend that the blockade deprives them of essential goods.

The flotilla, carrying nearly 700 activists from about 40 nations, attempted to break the blockade and deliver food and other non-military supplies to Gaza. On May 31, Israeli forces boarded the six ships of the flotilla in international waters and seized them.

Israeli commandos rappelled to the deck of Mavi Marmara from helicopters. Some passengers say Israeli troops began firing before they reached the deck. Israel says the shooting occurred after soldiers were ambushed by passengers. In addition to the nine passengers killed, dozens were injured.

Israel has defended the assault, maintaining that it acted legally to prevent attacks on its citizens from Gaza. But the seizure of the vessels has drawn widespread criticism from around the world, and the United States has urged Israel to consider lifting the three-year blockade.

The three California activists were aboard the Sfendoni, a smaller boat in the six-ship flotilla. Israeli commandos boarded the ship from speedboats and fired paintball guns and tear gas canisters, the activists said. A scuffle broke out when several passengers attempted to prevent the troops from entering the wheelhouse.

Gene St. Onge, 63, a civil engineer and activist from Oakland, said he was struck and cut in the forehead while trying to help a passenger who had been injured in the melee. A week after the incident, the mark on his forehead is still visible.

St. Onge said the flotilla's plan called for the nearly 700 activists aboard the vessels to remain nonviolent if Israeli forces boarded the ships. He said he was dismayed that violence broke out but criticized the Israeli government for its heavy-handed tactics.

"I don't think we were naive at all," he said. "We were prepared for them to board us and for there to be a nonviolent takeover."

The Bay Area activists said Israel's assault on the flotilla has demonstrated to the world how it uses brutality to enforce its will on Gaza, and they expressed hope that the global attention will lead to an end to the Gaza siege.

"We shone a light on Israel," St. Onge said. "People are much more aware and angry about the way Israel is treating Palestinians. There is more pressure on them to change their ways. Aside from seeing nine people die, I'm not sure I would have done it any differently."

Janet Kobren, 67, a retired math teacher from Oakland who also was aboard the Sfendoni, predicted that activists will mount an even greater attempt to break the Gaza blockade. "There are going to be more of these and larger efforts," she said.

Kobren and Larudee are co-founders of the Free Palestine Movement. Larudee also is a co-founder of the Free Gaza Movement, a coalition of pro-Palestinian groups committed to ending the blockade. In 2008, he was one of 44 passengers aboard two small wooden boats that sailed to Gaza and broke the blockade.

After he was taken into custody on the Sfendoni, he said he was beaten and his arms were harshly twisted when he asked for clothes to replace the badly torn pants he was wearing.

"I hope this event will make the American public realize that Israel is not our friend," he said. "It is taking advantage of us."