Israel: Occupation, Piracy and More
Israel: Occupation, Piracy and More Mina Harballou | Al Jazeera Correspondent – London
It was not a routine assignment, it was an unusual mission to cover an exceptional story: the Women’s Boat to Gaza cruising to challenge the Israeli naval siege of the Gaza Strip. It is every journalist’s dream to be part of a story of that scale: establishing the truth and exposing injustice. The Women’s Boat, which was an initiative by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition in 2016, consisted of an entirely female crew and one ship, Zaytouna-Oliva. It set sail from Barcelona on September 14, 2016. Al Jazeera was the only window through which the world could watch this small wooden boat defying the Israeli occupation and its mighty military arsenal. The sea was rough, and the boat was tossed left and right; up and down. Our camera woman, Huda, and I went to the upper deck to check on our equipment. As we tried to tie the broadcasting device, I slipped and almost fell off the edge. Luckily, I held on to a rope and was pulled up again. Thunder and lightning added more panic to the scene. Strong winds broke the mainsail mast into pieces. “We are going down; the boat is sinking,” cried the captain, Madeleine Habib.
Without hesitation she ran towards the backup engine. The boat was flooded with water and as a result, the captain decided to change course and head to international waters off the Greek coast for repairs and supplies. Once anchored, the technicians who came on board to repair the boat informed us it wasn’t fit to safely complete the journey. The women on board did not fear the sea, their concern was that the Israelis would intercept the boat and deny us access to Gaza’s shores. I felt a heavy burden of responsibility since the activists had placed their confidence in us, the Al Jazeera crew, to cover the journey until it reached its end. It had become a dual responsibility: professional and moral. All those on board faced the harsh conditions with smiles on their faces. They wanted to raise awareness of the role played by women in advancing the Palestinian struggle against the Israeli occupation. On the last night of the 1,000-mile voyage, we could see the shore of the Gaza Strip. In stark contrast to the nearby brightly-lit Israeli cities, it was shrouded in darkness.
“Gaza is sinking in darkness, while Israel is stealing their natural resources and fuels,” said Ann Wright, a 70-year-old retired US army colonel and co-leader of the boat. By the end of our second week at sea, we spotted three large Israeli navy vessels heading towards us at high speed. They began radio broadcasts to our boat: “You must stop and divert to Ashdod or be forcibly stopped and confiscated by the Israeli Navy.”
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