Editor's Note: We received the following translation of the testimony of an Egyptian MP who was eye witness to events aboard the flotilla, bound for Gaza with relief supplies when it was attacked by Israel on the morning of May 31. Axis of Logic correspondent Cherifa Sirry kindly translated the testimony from Arabic to English.
- Les Blough, Editor
Dear Axis of Logic,
I just finished translating the testimony of one Egyptian MP on his experience with the flotilla, bringing relief supplies to Gaza when the Israelis attacked. This is from a daily TV program on Al Jazeera Arabic called "Ma Wara2 al Khabar"... which literally means "What is Behind the News". Today they hosted 4 or 5 released members of the flotilla or family members of those on the flotilla. I translated for you one of the interesting and descriptive testimony of this Egyptian member of parliament who was released earlier along with another Egyptian MP. They are both from the Muslim brotherhood and the government was very quick at asking for their release. Note also that Egypt opened Rafah today and that the brotherhood as well as other Arab groups all over the Arab world have already declared more convoys on their way to Gaza... through the sea... and through Rafah for as long as Egypt kept Rafah open, according to the MPs. Who would dare close Rafah now??!!! Even the Israelis want to send the aid to Gaza!!! Is the anger of the Arab people finally rising?
Hope you enjoy the translation!
Cherifa Sirry, Egypt
Program: Ma Wara2 Al Khabar (What is Behind the News) “They attacked us before dawn. They came from every side. They dropped down on from helicopters and climbed up from boats. It was a mess. People were falling over each other and on the injured.. with blood all over. We were trying to help each other.. We were trying to remove the survival buoys (floaters??) from over the injured before they died. This fighting went on until about 08H30 then the ship was completely surrounded and we were crammed in the inside.. Israeli commandos stood at the windows surrounding us with their machine guns pointed at us.… Whoever moved or raised a was aimed at with lasers weapons.. The Israelis wanted to move the injured and the dead… but when men stood up to carry the bodies, the Israelis got scared of them and pointed their laser weapons to their foreheads… right between the eyes or in their eye.. "The Israelis then ordered the men to sit down and told one of the blond foreign women activists to carry a body… but she wasn’t strong enough to do so.. She tried with her sister but they were too weak.. and by the way we’d like to express our gratitude and admiration for the European activist Sarah and her sister for their solidarity with us.. Sheikh Galal then tried to carry a body… but when he stood up, the Israelis got scared of him because he has a strong body… so they ushered him in a demeaning way “go away!! go away!!” Then they told him to come back… and then sent him away again. He tried to carry an oxygen tank to help the injured but the Israelis got scared again of him and shoved him off in a rude way. It was awful! The whole scene was disgusting!! It was more like a group of cannibals hunting for their meal!!! "Finally the injured and torn bodies were carried out with much difficulty.. but none of theIsraeli soldiers… those racist Jewish butchers… accepted to stretch out a helping hand to any of the injured as we tried to lift them to helicopters. The dead remained inside the ship and once we managed to get the injured out the Israelis sat us down and tied our hands together so tightly that until now I can’t feel some of my fingers. Even after they tied the men up, they insisted on removing their sirwals (type of Arab clothe… like large trousers..) in order to deliberately humiliate them.. then they pushed them among the women and the elderly people… who were also tied up… and ordered everybody around.. “yala!!! yala!!!” as though they were speaking to cattle! "We stayed on top of the ship from 10:00 to 15:00 under the scorching sun… without a drop of water or a bread crumb. A 13 year old girl who was with us, looked for water on the ship and carried some in her hands.. and poured it over our heads. This little girl kept going and coming pouring water on us. It was very hot. Then the Israelis removed the … from the hands of one reporter and a European woman so that they could get us some water. The Israelis were behaving with us as though we were prisoners of war!!! They were behaving like a barbaric blood-thirsty army!!. They were like cannibals!!! These Zionists are even worse than cannibals! "I want to tell you sister if I have the time, one more example of their behavior: When the ships arrived to Ashdod, hundreds of Israelis were waiting at the shore and applauding those barbaric butchers! They applauded and clapped for the racist Jewish captain of the ship as the ship entered the port! Even the Israeli employees standing at the windows of the buildings in the port were clapping and waving Israeli flags!!! Hundred of them stood there and clapped!!! And we are being told to uphold the “Arab peace Initiative”???!!!! What peace initiative???!!! "To think that we are being told that there can be a “solution” which such people other than the sword???!!! Where are all those who support this so-called “peace initiative” now????!!!!! Where are they???!!! A salute to Qatar!!! A salute to the Kuwaiti Emir also for withdrawing from this initiative!!!! Madam… these people were clapping!!! They were happy at the slaughter that took place!!!!! They were happy at a slaughter!!!! They clapped as the first child disembarked from the ship!!! They clapped as the Sheikh Ra’ed Salah disembarked (very important sheikh protecting the Aqsa mosque and reporting Israeli activity under the mosque)!!!!!! They clapped as they saw Sheikh Hammad… a hero of 1948!!!!!! What a disaster this is!!!!!! Those barbarians are happy at their newest slaughter!!!” Translated by Cherifa Sirry for Axis of Logic from the program: Ma Wara2 Al Khabar, Al Jazeera Arabic. Visit Cherifa's informative website,
Al Jazeera Arabic
01 June 2010
Testimony of Dr. Hazem Farouk, Egyptian MP from the Muslim Brotherhood who was aboard the Freedom Flotilla and was released by Israel earlier today: