The world was duped

By Miriam Ziv, Citizen Special June 11, 2010

The international outrage that arose immediately following the Israeli navy's recent interception of a Gaza-bound flotilla was a sad reminder of the hypocrisy Israel faces on a constant basis.

It would seem the greater part of the international media chose to ride the slander wave and for a few days at least, showed reticence in acknowledging this "peace mission" was actually a political stunt aimed at manipulating the world. Many journalists, sadly, abandoned their duties to search for the truth. Instead, they fuelled international outrage with rushed judgments and exaggerations.

The truth is spreading however. The situation has become more transparent, and the peaceful interception of the Rachel Corrie ship last week has, in concrete terms, exposed the difference between a humanitarian peace mission led by civilians and a violent mission led by hostile extremists. Last week, it was as if these words were completely interchangeable.

Despite the fact international coverage of the event has become a bit more balanced, the extremist nature of the organizers of the flotilla, as well as of some of the passengers on board, remains overlooked in many circles.

Leading the organizations participating in the aid flotilla was the Turkish organization IHH. The IHH, under the guise of an Islamic charity organization, plays a central role in terrorist recruitment and financing. Outlawed by the state of Israel in 2008, the IHH was also heavily scrutinized by the Turkish government, which first expressed concerns about the group in 1997. The office of the organization in Istanbul was searched and several activists arrested. Further inspection into what was found in the office revealed IHH members' plans to take part in jihadist activities in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Chechnya. In recent years, the IHH has assisted Hamas with its propaganda campaign, as well as its armed struggle.

Five of the passengers were also found by the Israeli government to be active terror operatives, some providing direct financial support to al-Qaeda and others to Hamas.

The Middle East Media Research Institute has released footage of statements made by the head of the IHH Turkish Islamist organization, Bulent Yildirim, who in a speech delivered in Gaza in 2009, glorified martyrdom. The Israel Defence Forces released a video shot from the Mavi Marmara in which a passenger was heard discussing his desire to become a martyr.

Sadly, the demonization of Israel that has been reinforced by this incident has been a major distraction to the world which was really the flotilla's ultimate goal. Arab and Muslim populations, for example, are being manipulated into supporting the forceful dictatorships that rule over them, thereby forgetting the state of stagnancy they find themselves in.

What we are faced with is a campaign to spread Islamic fundamentalism around the world. Those who have participated in the global support for this flotilla have, knowingly or unknowingly, also helped to embolden Hamas and other terrorist organizations.

Much scarier than the confounding of words is the complete reversal of values by the international community. This voyage is not only part of an attempt to deny Israel's right to defend itself, it is also part of an orchestrated attempt to threaten western values, and this is not something the world should be so naive about. Extremist Muslim leaders have time and time again publicly stated that Islam would eventually take over, and the duping of the world is only part of their master plan.

Those who choose to unfairly attack Israel and isolate it for defending itself against terrorist threats, seem to be forgetting one crucial thing: "Israel's struggle," as the Spanish journalist Pilar Rahola wrote, "is the struggle of the world."

Miriam Ziv is Israel's ambassador to Canada.
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