The Last Exile

While its easy to criticize the IDF’s decision to let Navy commandos board the Flotilla of Fools with paintball guns as their primary weapons, the fact remains the IDF evaluated the character of the peace activists using the world ‘peace’ and thought them nothing more than well-intentioned retro hippies ready to sing ‘Give Peace a Chance’ rather than an armed horde of thugs ready to do violence at the mere sight of sailors of the Israeli nation. I doubt the state of Israel or the IDF will ever make that same mistake again.

The outrageous behaviour of the Palestinian Peace camp has awaken the Israeli street from its slumber and demonstrations in support of the IDF and against Turkish perfidy have been happening around the country. Ynet News:

(Photo Michael Cherkassky)

“We fell into the trap they set us,” said Ronen Shuval, chairman of Im Tirtzu. “We convinced ourselves that they were peace activists, so the soldiers went on board with paintball guns instead of tear gas and weapons,” he said, referring to the raid in which participants of the flotilla resisted the soldiers, resulting in bloody clashes which left nine activists dead.

“We went out with three main messages,” he explains: “Moral support for the IDF and the navy, protest against Turkish hypocrisy, and a message not to yield to the other side’s psychological warfare.
“Various groups have tried to promote terror activities under the guise of human rights, and we fell into the trap and went into battle with paintball guns. We have to remind ourselves that a terrorist is a terrorist, and that’s how we have to deal with him.”

(Photo: Natan Gilat)”We set the system going at full volume,” he continues. “We held a huge demonstration in Beersheba, one of the most apathetic campuses in Israel, and we shook it out of its lethargy. We also held impressive demonstrations in the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and in Haifa, and one in front of the Turkish embassy. People on campus are motivated to participate. Another demonstration will be held tomorrow (Thursday) in Tel Aviv University, and a demonstration is planned in Haifa to take place at sea, under the title ‘We’re all navy’.”
 
“Our aim is to make people boycott Turkey and its products, to combat Turkish hypocrisy,” Shuval explains. “Our hasbara (official explanation) system is not good abroad because it is weak inside the country.”

Count me in on the boycott against Turkey.

Update: Arutz Sheva has posted videos of Israeli student demostrations in support of israel around the country.