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Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Gaza aid workers en route for Greece after dispute
2010-11-12
LONDON - Aid workers on a ship originally intended for the Palestinian territory of Gaza are instead being taken to Greece against their will after an apparent dispute with the captain, a charity said on Thursday.
So they couldn't wait til they got to Gaza to display their freak ...
The Road to Hope charity said the Greek ship the Strofades IV left the port of Derna in Libya early on Thursday taking 10 aid workers — seven Britons, two Irish people and an Algerian — to Greece. The charity said three Libyans, two port policemen and the port manager, were also aboard the ship.

“We think the ship is several miles out to sea in the Mediterranean now. They’ve been making slow but steady headway. I have no idea what that Greek ship owner is up to,” a charity spokesperson said in a statement.
Maybe the charity workers didn't pay their bar tab ...
“The Greek captain ... was reported to be saying he wanted to proceed to Greek islands and drop off the convoyers (aid workers) and Libyans, so that the Greek people could deal with them as illegal immigrants,” the Road to Hope statement said.

Britain’s foreign ministry said it was aware of the incident. “We understand that the ship now is heading towards Greek territorial waters,” the ministry said in a statement.

“Our Embassy in Athens has spoken to the shipping company and is also in close contact with the Greek authorities. Our priority remains that there be a safe resolution to this incident,” the statement continued.
Posted by:Steve White

#2  Other news reports have the Libyans and the "aid workers" saying it was a monetary dispute.
Posted by: Pappy   2010-11-12 14:10  

#1  excerpt from AFP tells quite a different story. One that makes more sense...

The police said they were investigating what had happened, while an Ionian Bridge official, Maria Georgoulia, said a dozen activists had tried to storm the ship in the Libyan port of Derna on Thursday.


"They wanted to go to Egypt and then to Gaza," she said. "There is no contract between us and the activists, what they did was illegal."


She said that some 100 militants had gathered on the port at Derna on Wednesday wanting to board the Strofades IV.


"We called on the Libyan authorities to help us but finally seven Libyan police stayed on board the ship throughout the voyage without doing anything," Georgoulia added.


She said the crew had given food to the militants, "who put on a whole show on the deck, wearing lifebuoys and pretending to be in danger."

rest at link

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/101112/world/greece_libya_gaza_shipping_aid_1

Posted by: Swanimote   2010-11-12 12:24  

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