Vittorio's Video of a Palestinian boat damaged by Israeli naval forces:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=9E7nqVEOmsE
What is terrorism?
For a russian citizen
terrorism is a kamikaze from Chechnya who blows himself up in a Moscow theatre.
For a Grozny citizen
terrorism is russian military which razed to the ground his town.
For an American soldier based in Afghanistan
terrorism is the mujaheddin exploding with a car-bomb in front of an american army base.
For Afghan people living at the border with Pakistan
terrorism are the NATO bombs coming form 10.000 metres distance on a marriage party and tear to shreds dozen of civilians.
For a European tourist spending his holidays in Sharm El-Sheikhamerican army baseamerican army base
terrorism is an act of violence and bombing against a holiday village.
For an Egyptian living in a dusty village in the desert just few kilometres from that artificial paradise,
terrorism is a government foddering his dictatorial power with thousands of euros coming from his tourist business while his sons are dying for starvation.
As we can easily understand, it's quite complicated finding a clear and unequivocal definition about what is terrorism; being the question itself so controversial, the answer strictly depends from which side we are observing the bloodsheds and in which side we are counting victims among friends and relatives.
Few days ago
9/11 victims were sadly commemorated remembering a day of mourning for whole humanity, not only for New York citizens or for Chileans looking back on thousands of people dead and disappeared after Pinochet golpe.
But I'm wondering how many 9/11's are taking place every day around the world and every day here in Gaza where 1,5 millions of innocent people are dying slowly, cut off into the bigger open prison ever built in the world.
In the video, which I'm kindly asking you to spread as I did with the former one, we can see a tangible example of terrorism showing every day off the Gazan coasts.
A clear and definitive terrorism which doesn't admit objections or uncertainties about its definition, a 'made in Israel' terrorism.
Fishermen that we are often taking offshore, where the sea is more generous for fishing, few days ago paid a high price.
On Monday 10th of September, at about 5 pm, at a distance of 6 miles from the gazan coasts, in palestinian waters, an Israeli military gunboat deliberately rushed at high speed against one of our fishing boats, that day without internationals on board.
The impact was devastating for the fragile palestinian fishing boat (as it's shown in the video), the israeli military gun boat ran into one side of the fishing boat, literally passing over it and then going on over and sailing on the opposite side.
On the prow marks left on the wood from the Israeli engine turbines are perfectly visible.
Luckily the boat was fishing at that time and it was, therefore, steady and well-judged in water, otherwise it would have tipped over with all the crew which would have certainly died.
Even more luckily all members of the crew were astern cooking the meal that would have interrupted the Ramandan fast, at about 6 pm.
Unluckily damages for the owner of the boat amount to 50.000 dollars, maybe more.
Fixing them in short time will be impossible since in Gaza under siege is not possible to find all necessary materials.
The only wounded person for this crazy terrorist attack, according to some military sources in Tel Aviv, is an Israeli soldier, since that suicide action seriously compromised also the Israeli crew life.
Palestinian fishermen try every day to go offshore and do their job to survive, but they are always victims of israeli attacks which, against every international agreement and all human rights, as a general punishment, force them in a fishing area limited at 6 miles from the coast. Even though attacks often happen at just 3 miles offshore.
Our presence as internationals, equipped with video cameras, work as a deterrent toward these daily crimes and Israeli terrorism.
A boat captain told me that he was contacted by radio from an israeli warship and threatened in Hebrew: "When the internationals will leave Gaza, our revenge will be dreadful".
It's therefore a vital need for these innocent people that a group of internationals could always be present here in Gaza.
I invite all European and American citizens to come here and actively participate to the defense of human rights, joining all of us ISM activists, against every crime and Israeli terrorism, to be human.
Stay human.
Vik from Gaza
Vittorio Arrigoni
contact: guerrillaingaza@gmail.com