Egyptian Police Launch Violent Attack Against Humanitarian Aid Convoy

The military might of Israel and Egypt combined, lacks the steel framing these humanitarian activists.

(SALEM/LOS ANGELES/CAIRO) - Israel trains its pet animals well. Hundreds of humanitarians have come under attack while trying to reach Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid.

They have been trying to reach Gaza for weeks, and now their pursuit has led them to ruthless violence at the hands of Egyptian police, under the command of Israel.

As information was flowing in today, the group LA VOZ DE AZTLAN in Los Angeles has been pulling down the information.

"Just a few hours ago approximately 2,000 Egyptian riot policemen attacked and injured volunteers of the Viva Palestina aid convoy that were inside the port of Al Arish preparing to drive the convoy vehicles to Gaza to deliver medical supplies and other humanitarian supplies."

Reports from convoy activists making their way through Twitter, indicate that there were serious injuries to some of the volunteers who suffered blows to the head by baton wielding Egyptian policemen.

These people are mostly British, American, French and Czech although many more countries have participants.

"Some were taken out of the port compound on stretchers and many of the victims are being attended at a mosque at the port. There are reports that some of the Viva Palestina volunteers are missing."

One convoy member reported, "Tear gas, water cannons, rock throwing, they are under full attack… whole thing happened when convoy members were still locked inside this gated compound, then suddenly a very large group of plain clothes 'people' arrived at the compound with sticks and stones".

At least 20 members of the convoy received injuries during the attack. Most disturbing is the fact that some members of the convoy are missing and cannot be found.

Another convoy member stated, "I was coming back from dinner with 8 brothers and sisters. . . approximately 30 riot police approached us & started harassing, pushing and hitting us. The situation escalated. We tried to lock arms and hold each other and get to the gate."

"Two meters from the gate they separated us and beat the shit out of us. I got dragged under and into a group of the riot police and was being beaten, managed to get to the wall. As I was being beaten, one of the brothers grabbed me from across the wall and pulled me into the compound. Of the nine of us, four are missing I don't know what has happened to them."

This is the third aid convoy that has come under attack in the Viva Palestina humanitarian efforts organized and led by Member of the British Parliament George Galloway.

We have been keeping our viewers up to speed on this important development in an attempt to reach the people of Gaza and deliver more than 200 vehicles loaded with food and medicine.

Most believe it is simply Israel's way of committing genocide against the Palestinian people, and it isn't hard to imagine. The United States is also extremely complicit in the matter, going so far as to dismiss a UN report that concluded Israel's attacks on Gaza one year ago were clearly war crimes in violation of international law.

A fourth convoy called the Hugo Chavez Viva Palestina Aid Convoy is planned from Venezuela, around September of this year. We will cover the progress of that effort as it gets closer.

This link will take you to our stories that regard or are specifically about developments in Gaza: Salem-News.com Gaza articles

Articles that are specifically related to the current effort to reach Gaza with the Viva Palestina Convoy and the Free Gaza Movement:

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Tim King is a former U.S. Marine with twenty years of experience on the west coast as a television news producer, photojournalist, reporter and assignment editor. In addition to his role as a war correspondent, this Los Angeles native serves as Salem-News.com's Executive News Editor. Tim spent the winter of 2006/07 covering the war in Afghanistan, and he was in Iraq over the summer of 2008, reporting from the war while embedded with both the U.S. Army and the Marines. Tim holds numerous awards for reporting, photography, writing and editing, including the Oregon AP Award for Spot News Photographer of the Year (2004), first place Electronic Media Award in Spot News, Las Vegas, (1998), Oregon AP Cooperation Award (1991); and several others including the 2005 Red Cross Good Neighborhood Award for reporting. Serving the community in very real terms, Salem-News.com is the nation's only truly independent high traffic news Website. You can send Tim an email at this address: newsroom@salem-news.com

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gp January 7, 2010 4:56 pm (Pacific time)

Thanks again Tim, Bonnie and SN for reporting on the story. I am convinced that there will be a "hundredth monkey" effect when enought people know, critical mass, and it will end.

Josh A. January 6, 2010 11:57 am (Pacific time)

I just can't fathom any of this... These people stopping this aid mission can't be human like the rest of us? They are animals. Or worse, animals don't have the ability to think as deeply as these 'humans'. This is... for lack of a better word, demonic behavior. This really breaks my heart.

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