On Saturday evening a group of American activists staged a sit-in at the Israeli embassy in Boston, Massachusetts. They chanted slogans of solidarity with the Palestinian people, and against the Israeli army for intercepting the aid ships that were heading to Gaza.The Israeli Navy intercepted the ships on Friday and detained all 28 of the activists on board, 21 of whom are still in Israeli custody.
During the protest in Boston, the activists chanted “Free Palestine”, “Occupy Wall Street, not Palestine” and “Viva Palestina”.
At the consulate, the activists chanted slogans against the siege and the occupation, such as “Hey Hey, Ho Ho, Israeli apartheid got to go”, “Free Free Gaza”, “Free Free Palestine”, and “Occupy Boston Not Palestine, Militarization Is A Crime”.
The activists were protesting the Israeli takeover of the Freedom Waves flotilla, consisting of a Canadian and an Irish ship, who were heading to Gaza to break the siege and deliver humanitarian supplies.
One of the activists stated that the sit-on protest at the embassy “…did not witness any rough events, except an incident when the security guard tried to take his iPhone from him.”
The army boarded the ships and towed them to Ashdod Port; Israel is now in the process of deporting all activists onboard. Seven of the activists have been freed, including a man from Haifa, who was initially detained but later released, the Arabs48 news website reported.
The remaining 21 are challenging their deportation order, and will remain in prison pending the outcome of the judge’s decision their upcoming court case.
The activists who staged the sit-in at the Israeli consulate in Boston stated that what the Israeli army did “Is an act of piracy,” especially since it was carried out in international waters.
There were 27 activists onboard the two ships heading to Gaza. As in the case of previous attacks against solidarity ships, Israel claimed that they violated the naval siege on Gaza.
Video of Boston Protest:
