IDF's flotilla strategy presented at MICS (media in conflicts seminar)

Avital Leibovich the spokeswomen for the Israeli Defence Forces spoke to the participants of the Media in Conflicts Seminar two weeks after the flotilla incident.

She was tasked with presenting the other side of the story and was open to a barriage of questions from concerned young journalists mainly from Europe (one from Brazil and another from India/US).

Her argument is as follows:

In June 2007 the navy blockade was set up to stop the threat from sea. In 2009 the IDF stopped a civilian ship filled with guns which came from Iran. So on 31st May 2010, the IDF were sent to prevent the breaking of that blockade.

A country imposing a blockade has the right to defend its blockade. The IDF gave a call to the ship five times but received no positive response.

The other five ships were diverted with no shots being fired. However the sixth ship had 500 passengers on board which was the main problem. As it was a huge passenger ship, the IDF could not sail along to climb up to reach the commanding deck.

The soldiers had two separate guns - big guns with paintballs and smaller pistols with live rounds.

The first solder was beaten when he reached the ship. The passengers on board had weapons, saws, clubs, swords, flap jackets and no humanitarian aid whatsoever.

The first soldier was beaten and second and third soldiers were shot. Seven soldiers in total were wounded. The fourth soldier opened fire and nine people who were killed in self defence.

They were a group of terrorists and the IDF found different rounds and large amounts of money on board the ship. She wanted to stress the relationship with the humanitarian aid and terrorist groups.

The boats were carrying very little aid as more goes through the normal routes into Gaza everyday.

Soldiers can open live fire if they are under life or death situations, and the extremists came with provocation. They had war in their eyes.

After the brief presentation of her account she opened up the floor to questions. I was not able to take down all of the questions that were posed but some of her responses are as follows:

There are some security implications that they can’t expose.

There is no easy solution in the world in any military operation.

The operation did not fail as we had a goal for the blockade to not be broken and we succeeded.

The press was concentrated at the port and a look out hill, the IDF communication team stayed with the press until everyone left.

They took a marine helicopter who carried the film from the ships to Tel Aviv for the press to see what was happening after security checks took place.

The war is being fought on the military level, political level, governmental level, and the media.

We have to protect the country and believe in our principles.

The IDF is tweeting at http://twitter.com/idfspokesperson

Required reading:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7545636.stm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007%E2%80%93present_blockade_of_the_G...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/11/gaza-flotilla-attack-ne...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/7886078...

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article7141...

http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/politics/international_politi...