I can claim to have had a small hand in instigating the legal complaint to the International Criminal Court by the Comoros Islands against the murders by Israeli troops on the Mavi Marmara. The Washington Post writes:
In a filing, lawyers from the Istanbul-based law firm Elmadag argued that the events that took place on the Mavi Marmari should be considered as having occurred on the territory of Comoros.
As though this were in any sense a matter of dispute. That crimes committed on any ship outside of territorial waters are under the jurisdiction of the flag state of the ship, is both customary international law of ancient standing and a fundamental provision of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Article 92:
Ships shall sail under the flag of one State only and, save in exceptional cases expressly provided for in international treaties or in this Convention, shall be subject to its exclusive jurisdiction on the high seas.
The Comoros Islands are a tiny state off the East coast of the continent. They are part of the disgraceful system where small or failed states lease out their shipping registers – often corruptly – to western companies who run them, enabling major shipping owners to evade safety, conditions, qualifications and pay regulations of more serious states. Liberia has been the most notorious example. The Comoros government therefore deserves huge congratulation for taking its flag state responsibility so seriously, and so bravely, in taking on Israel.
It is a responsibility Turkey deliberately shed just before the Mavi Marmara was attacked.
There is, in this regard, as I reported from my meetings with organisers and bereaved families of the Mavi Marmara in Izmir two years ago, something extremely disturbing about the case of the Mavi Marmara:
Shortly before sailing, the registration was switched from Turkey to the Comoros Islands. This exempted Turkey from the responsibility of jurisdiction. It also made discussion at NATO much easier for the US; if the Israelis had attacked in international waters a ship flying the flag of a NATO state, that would have been a much more difficult thing for the alliance to ignore.
It turns out that the change was made at the insistence of the Turkish Ministry of Transport. They carried out a number of inspections of the Mavi Marmara prior to the Gaza trip and made repeated demands for changes: mattresses and cushions had to have more modern, fire resistant foam. Internal walls had to be upgraded for fire resistance. Whatever changes were then made, the Ministry found new faults. In the end, the Ministry had said that the Mavi Marmara would be impounded unless it changed its registration, as it could not meet the safety requirements for a Turkish flagged ship.
The strange thing is that the Mavi Marmara had been Turkish flagged for years, and hade been running tourist cruises out of Istanbul. None of the faults the Ministry found resulted from any changes, yet none had apparently been a problem on past inspections. The family told me that, before the Mavi Marmara sailed, they had been in no doubt the Turkish government had been deliberately obstructive and had forced the change of flag.
Part of the Turkish state was insistent on giving the Mavi Marmara no protection. You have to ask the question, did these people know in advance the Mavi Marmara was to be attacked? The fatal shootings on board were mostly not random – they were targeted shots to the head of selected people. If Israel had planned this, how long in advance, where did they get their intelligence on who was aboard? If they had assistance from within the Turkish state, of course the Turkish state would want to ensure they did not have legal responsibility over the killings.
Let me be plain. I am not accusing the current government of Turkey. But they inherited a bureaucracy and political establishment riddled, especially at the most senior levels, with ultra-nationalists and relatives and connections of the Turkish military. The Turkish Foreign Office in particular is notoriously ultra and completely penetrated and corrupted by Israel. The Turkish government has had a most difficult job in changing the direction of the country without provoking violent nationalist reaction. That has been a process; and the result is that those apparently in power did not in reality get control of all the levers of power at once.
We are a long way yet from knowing the full truth about the Mavi Marmara: and Israel is not the only place to look.
And the Khazak connection. Seems Jimmy Wales is not above a little rewriting of history, either. Sorry, Khazak thread closed, so posting it here –
http://wikipediocracy.com/2013/01/02/jimmy-wales-kazakhstan-tony-blair-and-wikipedia-a-timeline/
“Syria crisis: Russia ‘sends sophisticated weapons'”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22565405
@ April Showers :
“John Goss. Sorry to see that the resident clown found it necessary to chide you using my name in the process even though I was not around last night.”
________
I hadn’t realised that I needed to check whether you were online before daring to mention your name in a post. But glad to hear that you get out occasionally!
*****
“Komodo B.Liar’s faithful right hand woman Ruth Turner was to become a mother at the age of 41. The father is Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the Royal Society of Arts and an ex B.Liar aide.”
________
Point being made?
Are you turning into a gossip columnist?
Stop wasting bandwidth and do please try to stay on-topic.
It’s good to see one’s points repeated. It adds emphasis.
@ John Goss;
I wonder why Anna Ardin mentioned ‘Jew-haters’ amoung the categories of people who she alleges were persecuting her on the net?
And I also wonder why you saw fit to mention only that category in your post? I can only imagine that you did so because this thread’s about the Mavi Marmara and that you are subscribing to the idea that the two ‘conspiracy’ theories (the Assange case and the Mavi Marmara case) are linked?
———-
More generally, I think you might have to agree with me that there is an unpleasant whiff of anti-Jewishness per se around the contributions of several of the regular posters on this blog. It’s always explained as being anti-Zionism but I find it difficult to be convinced. It reminds me a little of David Irving, who on his blog always denies being anti-Jewish (even adducing as ‘evidence’ that he once employed a female Jewish assistant) but nevertheless loses no opportunity to single out societal offences such as fraud, embezzlement and so on committed by Jews. I do however exempt you from this charge.
—————
BTW, much as several posters have congratulated the Comoros on their ‘courageous’ stand in bringing the ICC case, I have still seen no explanation of the likely reasons for them having done so. Or was it just a sudden rush of ‘morality’ to the head of a state which, apparently, is happy to act as a flag state(like Liberia and others) for a variety of dubious reasons (cf para 2 of Craig’s lead-in post)? Just wondering.
@ April Showers :
Since you like emphasis, I’ll ask again : what was the point of mentioning the Ruth Turner has become a mother at age 41? And that the father was a former aid of the BLiar?
I’m sure there’s an excellent point lurking there somewhere so don’t be shy!
yiddery + yarmulkary + dershowitzery = Kempe,an extremely sad sayanim Sach!
A trained hasbarista out of Starbucks Herzliya College !
BTW – wasnt he told to FO by Craig?
Of possible interest to former FCO people who might just be reading this blog…or writing it…
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/tony-blair/10007640/How-Tony-Blair-courted-British-envoys-to-expand-his-foundations-influence.html
I think the Torygraph (makes sign of cross) has the general idea. The TBFF’s sole purpose is to network for Tony. The consultancies and speaking engagements follow. Donors needing to sweeten their public image fund the TBFF: Tony does some very pricy consultancy, advice or speechifying, often for dictators wishing to sweeten their image: Tony’s cash is laundered through the Firerush/Windrush network, paying the bare minimum of tax or less. Some of it may even filter back to TBFF, but although Tony is upfront about the multitudinous good works with which he blesses our world every day, he is remarkably coy about the funding, apart from keeping a vaguely credible set of accounts for his visible ventures, if not the LP’s.
Habbabkuk (La vita è bella!)
17 May, 2013 – 1:03 pm
“I think you might have to agree with me that there is an unpleasant whiff of anti-Jewishness per se around the contributions of several of the regular posters on this blog.”
Halfbaked, there is no “whiff of anti-Jewishness” here; it would not be tolerated. You, like all Zionists, conflate anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism (which itself is a misnomer anyway).
“It reminds me a little of David Irving…”?
I’m sure that most people on this blog know what your game is.
“By Way Of Deception, Thou Shalt Do War”
Craig 17 May, 2013 – 7:18 am
The exact details of Anna Ardin’s involvement with the Gaza flotilla is difficult to assess from what’s freely available. What is known is that the Swedish ship in the flotilla was called the Sophia and that Anna Ardin was the telephone press contact through a “congested satellite phone” between the Brotherhood movement and the Sophia.
http://kristenvanster.wordpress.com/2010/05/29/broderskapsrorelsen-twittrar-ombord-pa-ship-to-gaza/
So she would have known the location of the flotilla and therefore that of the Mavi Marmara. This Radsoft site gives some links. Anna Ardin was not however at the embassy in Montevideo but in Buenos Aries.
http://radsoft.net/rants/20111121,00.shtml
Being able to prove that she passed on details to Israeli intelligence, directly or through Sweden’s own intelligence services, would be difficult. And, of course, there is a possibility that she may not have been involved at all.
To my mind the most suspicious connection over aid to Gaza is her friendship with the journalist (or is it agent?) Niklas Svensson, as pointed out by one of your bloggers, Not Anna But Almost. Svensson managed to get right at the leading edge of the aid to Gaza and Mavi Marmara stories, having hopped on the same plane as the Swedes released from jail in Tel Aviv an hour before leaving. As the press contact Anna Ardin (and Peter Weiderud) had to make and pay for a swift booking for the released Swedes. Somehow, he claims he got details from Ben Gurion airport about which flight the Swedes were on. Svennson, who flew into Tel Aviv, got on the same plane and apparently broke the story.
Three months later Anna’s journalist friend broke another front-page story – the multiple rape charges against Assange. He was drinking with Carl Bildt, another friend at the time, and rushed back to his office for the scoop. Your comment-maker suggests to get there they must have been travelling at 140 km / hour.
I’m working on a story about Anna Ardin (mostly about her CIA connections) at the moment and any additional information regarding the flotilla and Ms Ardin would be welcome. Hope the above is of some help. I’m sure there is more on Flashback.
Sorry for the O/T: The Beeb are trumpeting that Russia has been sending “modern” weapons to the Syrian regime. Why is “modern” so important here? Is it to distinguish those weapons from the “old fashioned” ones “we” have been sending to the heart-eating beasts of al Nusra?
I also notice the beeb have barely mentioned the various scandals now swamping the Drone King, not least the wholesale snooping on Associated Press. Why so coy, auntie?
Could it be that too much publicity might cause some people (fools!) to ask if “our” Government does the same thing?
And to think we pay over a 100 quid a year for this pish! Why don’t they just have Bruce Forsyth presenting Question Time and have done with it!
@ The Scourge :
“there is no “whiff of anti-Jewishness” here; it would not be tolerated. You, like all Zionists, conflate anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism (which itself is a misnomer anyway).”
———
Oh, really? Are you sure?
The only problem with your comment is that I’m not a Zionist.
And you might have noticed – or perhaps not (you might not “be arsed” to do so) – that I use the expression “anti-Jewish” and not “antisemitism”.
———
“I’m sure that most people on this blog know what your game is.”
——-
I’m sorry that you regard posting here as a “game”.
But leaving that aside, what would my so-called game be?
I have been having fun reading the accounts for the Tony Blair Faith Foundation. Income £1.27m Spending >£3m
Throughout the eminence is referred to as the ‘Patron’. The others are ‘Fellows’. Chartres Bishop of London and Rabbis Sacks and Rosen have been enrolled to the advisory council plus others including the RC Archbishop of Dublin,
The TBFF is like Common Purpose plus religion. Ruth Turner is named as the Chief Executive and has a salary of £120-£130k.
http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/Accounts/Ends43/0001123243_AC_20120430_E_C.pdf
The three trustees, Coke, Clinton and Sinclair are also directors of the UK company called The Tony Blair Faith Foundation Ltd plus two others Dame Gail Rebuck and a Sir Michael Barber. The latter was a B.Liar education advisor.http://companycheck.co.uk/company/06198959
Click on Clinton and Coke to see where else they operate and the value of assets and liabilities.
http://companycheck.co.uk/company/06198959#people-tab
The company secretary is called Tyrolese Secretarial Ltd. Strange name for a human being?http://companycheck.co.uk/director/904051010
Under that heading, you can see the company names of Cherie Blair, Starbucks and 38 others plus 41 names of dissolved companies.
Oh what a tangled web we weave when we practise to deceive!
Apologies Komodo if you have dug some of this up before.
@ April Showers
Yes, the TBFF does sound like an employment opportunity for family and old chums, doesn’t it. And a lucrative one at that. What I don’t understand is why on earth anyone should want to give it money…and what it actually does.
Idem for his firm Tony Blair Associates. I mean, you wouldn’t want to hire a firm headed by Mr ex-Sir Fred Goodwin or Lord Norman Lamont, would you.
I suppose the TBFF is counted as a ‘charity’ (well, it’s charitable for some wothout a doubt) and so doesn’t pay corporation tax, but what about TB Associates? I hope it – unlike Starbucks, Amazon and Google – pays it full whack of UK taxes.
About Ardin and Ship to Gaza. She was involved in the first flottilla, but not in the second. The ship with Swedes was called Sofia. She was contact person if you wanted to get in touch with the ship as it was on its way. This is from the link posted by John Goss:
“Skeppet Sofia kan nås via en hårt belastad satellittelefon. Anna Ardin, presskontakt, 0733907017.” The ship Sofia can be reached via a very busy satellite telephone. Anna Ardin, press contact, 0733907017.
http://kristenvanster.wordpress.com/2010/05/29/broderskapsrorelsen-twittrar-ombord-pa-ship-to-gaza/
I can add that the ship Sofia was attacked and a fight took place. Henning Mankell, whom you probably have heard about, was one of the people who was taken captive by the Israelis. When he was released and transported to the airport in Israel (at a time point no one knew about), journalist Niklas Svensson had managed to get down to Israel and book a ticket back on the same plane as Manckell. He interviewed Manckell and made a scoop. But how did he know about Manckells release?
The Turkish Foreign Office in particular is notoriously ultra
Do what?
@Dreoilin
I think you misunderstood me. I work in technology, specifically database technologies. For almost 7 years, I worked for a French Canadian company which makes a ballistic imaging system to solve crimes committed with firearms. BATFE has a line item budget for the NIBIN (National Integrated Ballistic Information Network) program, which goes to Congress yearly. While these systems are sold all over the world to all sorts of police services, BATFE and the NIBIN program (kind of like the FBI’s AFIS program for nation wide finger print identification) have the largest national network world wide. This gives local, state, and federal agencies the ability to see if any bullets or shell casings recovered at a scene have been used by the same weapon somewhere else in the US. After 7 years I went work for some private companies that have nothing to do with anything government, or spooky stuff. Then I was picked up by a major corporation to basically fulfill there service needs to any government or private defense industry projects as well as intelligence agency projects. I did that for a about a year and a half and now I’m back in the private sector, working on nothing that requires a security clearance.
So, professionally I know a lot about database design and development, firearms, and ballistics. I’ve traveled to and even lived in many countries globally. I have met many people from all walks of life. Does that clear up any questions you have about me with the US Federal Gov? If you have ore please let me know.
Stockholm / Duqu here.
To who it may concern – regarding Ship to Gaza event 2010 due to requests from this blog.
I´m enclosing links to trusted newsclips from this event, you have to use google-translate as it is all in swedish.
The facts and the not so spoken facts but the revealing details shows another story in this event.
Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet log for this event:
http://www.svd.se/nyheter/utrikes/direktrapportering-om-stormningen-av-ship-to-gaza_4792145.svd
Swedish state department – Anders Jörle (yes-the same guy as also involved with Assange) + newsclips
http://blogg.ud.se/blog/author/andersjorle/
http://www.sydsvenskan.se/taggar/anders-jorle/
http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=83&artikel=3743752 Ardin and Jörle ship to Gaza
Anna Ardin launched a HBT-club in Gotland 2010 called “club Feber” (club fever), on of the high profile guest Niklas Svensson + other high ranking journos:
http://klubbfeber.wordpress.com/foton/
Niklas Svenssons official statement how he got the info of the expelled swedes 2010 in Ship to Gaza
http://www.resume.se/nyheter/dagspress/2010/06/02/jag-har-fatt-grattis-sms-f/
check the first comment on the flight arrangement- he got totally smoked…..
Ardin and Weiderud goes to EU-parlament regarding ship to gaza incident:
http://kristenvanster.wordpress.com/2010/06/02/broderskapsrorelsen-och-ship-to-gaza-uppvaktar-eus-utrikesminister/
Flashback check the details and finds a lot of errors…..
https://www.flashback.org/sp31376197
I can deliver more, but then mail me your specific request as this event is quite big with a lot of persons involved.
My remarks in this issue is, Israel Army was using all kinds of jamming just before attacking the convoy, but witnesses has told ( se newsarticles) that some handheld VHF was still working during the attack, this point out that the army was just using specifif frequenzies during this operation to avoid disturbing/jammin out a source on the boat. Either a Inmarsat-unit or a VHF-transmitter was used to guide the troops before the attack begun, local time was around 04 in the morning just before sunrise, this points out that the plan was to raid just atfter the night and morning shift was swapping and also that they had a very good overlook of who was were in those boats……
The soldiers were bringing albums with photos of the activists that turned out to be not older than 5-7 days old, so the attack was similar to the Abbatobad-raid by Sealteam-6 that ended UBL.
best regards
Duqu
@Komodo
17 May, 2013 – 8:51 am
Thanks for your reply. You’re one of the first people to say ‘a rational POV’.
I know the issue is a sensitive one up here, but really I wanted to hear or debate something more than the typical party line postings which seem to come automatically from many of the voices here.
Anyways, good reply and clarification!
I didn’t get where I am today by knowing alot about database design and development, firearms and ballistics! :p
Habbabkuk (La vita è bella!)
17 May, 2013 – 3:53 pm
“The only problem with your comment is that I’m not a Zionist.”
It is nice to hear that you don’t support the notion that Israel has the right to exist as a Jewish state run by Jews for the benefit of Jews (as opposed to a state for all its citizens).
@ Spalding
What’s your feeling about the Al Hilli assassination/event in France and the unconventional gun used?
Are these type of weapons used by many special forces/intelligence services, for one off hits, or are they also used in raids of the MM type?
Crab,
He tends to imply I’m a spook. That’s why the long drawn out message telling more about myself. I’m not some private contractor in a conflict zone, and I’m not doing someone’s dirty deeds. It’s why my TS/SCI clearance is no more.
Brian: Excuse me. Are you the Judean People’s Front?
Reg: Fuck off! We’re the People’s Front of Judea!
Reg: All right, but apart from the sanitation, medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, the fresh water system and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us?
Attendee: Brought peace?
Reg: Oh, peace – shut up!
Reg: There is not one of us who would not gladly suffer death to rid this country of the Romans once and for all.
Dissenter: Uh, well, one.
Reg: Oh, yeah, yeah, there’s one. But otherwise, we’re solid.
@nevermind
17 May, 2013 – 8:55 pm
Well I’m not sure why a pro would use a Luger 08, other than it probably was a collector’s item, and had never been used in a crime before, and probably was never registered via Ballistic Imaging. From what I just read, it’s claimed that the assassin used this so he would know he was out of rounds, which is crazy because most pro’s know their weapons really well, and military /law enforcement train for muscle memory and prefer to train on platforms which are similar to their issue. Also that model is prone to jam. For it’s time, it was a revolutionary weapon design, so I can see someone owning it if they were a collector of sorts, but not a pro.
The thing is, and again I’m not sure about all the facts or what evidence was recovered, if the rounds were 9X19mm most firearms in this caliber are easily traced with Ballistic Imaging and tool mark examination.
‘Are these type of weapons used by many special forces/intelligence services, for one off hits, or are they also used in raids of the MM type’
I’m not sure what the MM type is, but typically from what I have seen, most socom guys operate with weapons which use standard NATO ammunition, but not in all cases. Two firearms which come to my mind are in .45acp and one was developed for Marine socom (but since retired) which is a single stack 1911 colt firearm, and the other is the H&K USP, also chambered in .45acp, and was the only known ‘offensive’ weapon issued to socom. It was known as the MK 23, and was threaded and comes with a silencer. As for Agents with different US agencies, they standard issue is the Sig Sauer, usually the P229 chambered in .40S&W. I’m know the reason why most socom would prefer something chambered in .45acp. The knock down power is a great caliber as it’s big and moves at a slower velocity than your poppy 9mm and .40S&W.
As for if the hit was done by a spook or agent, well there are certainly other ways out there and other weapons to be used. I would think they would look for plausible deniability, and would use something other than a firearm to hit someone and their family up close. From the short amount of details I’ve read, this could have been like a mob style hit. Put as many rounds as needed into the target, drop the firearm (never used in a crime before), and walk away quietly.
In the end anything could be possible. The US Army handles are firearm related crimes in all branches. I’ve gone into their evidence locker more than a few times. There a .22 Ruger style pistols with integral silencers. I found out these weapons were developed and used in Vietnam for Phoenix Program assassinations…..
@ Doug Scorgie :
And it would be even nicer to hear from you, clearly and unambiguously, that you are not a Jew-hater.
(I must say, to be fair, that your comments have got milder (and also less foul-mouthed) since I first came across you here. You’ve obviously taken to heart the various criticisms levelled against you by myself and others and begun to adjust your contributions accordingly. And that, I’m pleased to say, is part of my contribution to this blog.)
Spalding
17 May, 2013 – 9:50 pm
To Nevermind:
“Well I’m not sure why a pro would use a Luger 08…”
Ballistic Imaging:
“A particularly interesting proposal is to create a national reference ballistic image database (RBID) that would house images from firings of all newly manufactured or imported firearms.”
“Proponents of this proposal argue that such a database could provide a quick investigative lead from evidence recovered at a crime scene to the underlying firearm’s original point of sale.”
http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12162&page=1
So the “modern” professional hit man would not want to use a newly manufactured or imported gun that could be traced back to the point of sale.
Which could be why a Luger 08 was used in the Al Hilli killing. No?
When I was scanning Ardins blog, i found once again that she had erased all studd before mid 2011 for a strange reason, nevertheless-I found her report from Gaza on dec 5 2009, 6 months before the actual raid, I also found another blogger that joined her that has not erased his info yet, here are the links with some palestinian name and pictures.
http://web.archive.org/web/20100812061248/http://www.ardin.se/
http://larslinder.wordpress.com/2009/12/05/gaza-palestina-och-folkratt/
regards
Duqu
Habbabkuk (La vita è bella!)
17 May, 2013 – 10:27 pm
@ Doug Scorgie :
“And it would be even nicer to hear from you, clearly and unambiguously, that you are not a Jew-hater.”
There is no justification for you to imply, as you do above, that I am a Jew-hater.
I don’t judge people on their ethnic or religious background; I judge people on their words and actions.
I am anti-Zionist because I believe it is based on a racist ideology; an ideology that places Jews in a “special” category above others.
A view that I believe is not shared by the majority of the world Jewry.
I do not consider Jews to be anything other than equals among men/women (the human race).
The majority of Zionists worldwide are Christian fundamentalists, not Jews.
I also believe Zionism is a factor in the increase of anti-Jewish sentiment in Europe.
So, to make my point; I do not hate Jews or Muslims or Gypsies or Eskimos or any other ethnic or religious group.
If I met a Jewish Eskimo Gypsy Muslim I would welcome him/her with open arms as long as he/she treated me with equal respect.
Error in my last link, use this one instead and scroll to bottom:
http://annaardin.wordpress.com/page/24/
Axel and Duqu, thanks for the additional information and clarification regarding Gaza raids.
At the moment I’m engaged in solidarity with the Guantanamo hunger strikers (another item the BBC largely ignores unless they’ve done something in the last day or two). 100 days and force fed like the suffragettes. Guantanamo is the most shameful place on earth in the 21st century.
I will study the links you have provided after the weekend. Thanks again.