Gale Courey Toensing, Medea Benjamin, Update on US Ship to Gaza, Flotilla Passengers Reflect and Plan Next Actions

Talk Nation Radio for July 7, 2011

Gale Courey Toensing, Medea Benjamin, Update on US Ship to Gaza
Flotilla Passengers Reflect and Plan Next Actions



TRT: 29:02
Produced by Dori Smith, in Storrs, CT and syndicated with Pacifica Network
Download at Pacifica's Audioport here or at Radio4all.net and Archive.org

We hear voices from the Gaza flotilla and interview Connecticut peace activist Gale Courey Toensing who provides us with an update as of July 2nd (from on board the Audacity of Hope in Greek port). Gale Gale Courey Toensing is a staff reporter for, Indian Country Today. Then Medea Benjamin, Global Exchange and Code Pink co-founder, provides an update as of July 7th (from Athens, Greece). Passengers of the flagship of the Gaza Flotilla 2, the US Boat to Gaza, as well as other vessels are now en route home. Greek authorities have confiscated their boat and other boats in the flotilla and are holding them.

We hear about possible fall out from the actions of U.S. and Israeli governments as well Greek officials involved in an exaggerated response to intercept the peace activists in waters off Greece as they left the port of Piraeus. Legal action is possible, according to Medea Benjamin, as John Klusmer, the captain of the Audacity of Hope, was arrested and held for days in severe conditions without a bed or ample food and water. He was released Tuesday and charges relate to a failure to obey a police order. They appear to be the equivalent of a misdemeanor.

The passengers on board the US Ship to Gaza, Audacity of Hope, have vowed to continue to work to "lift Israel's criminal siege of Gaza and end the Israeli occupation". This as the Obama administration and the State Department under Secretary of State Hillary Clinton continue to issue meaningless requests to the Israeli government that they stop pushing Palestinians out of their homes, crushing the homes, then building new settlements which are typically massive apartment complexes.

We are editing a half hour interview with Medea Benjamin to add to this week's available broadcasts.

See USTOGAZA online

See also "US Boat to Gaza Is a Quarter Jewish - "Not Too Shabby!" Tuesday 7 June 2011. by, Robert Naiman, in Truthout.