21 human rights workers including Irish workers kidnapped in Israel

On June 30, 21 human rights workers were kidnapped from their Free Gaza boat, the Spirit Of Humanity, by Israeli Occupation Forces.

The human rights workers, including Nobel peace prize laureate Mairead Maguire and former US congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, were on their way to deliver humanitarian and reconstruction supplies to Gaza.

Kidnappings have just been one of many features of Palestinian life and as Hot Press' Dearbhla Glynn wrote, every person in Gaza has their own story of the devastating conflict.

"In a district called Al–Salaam (which means ‘peace’), I filmed an old man living in a hut he had built from the rubble of his house, which had been destroyed in the January attacks. His son had also been killed. He had spent his life building his house, he said, and his garden. He did not understand why his house had been bombed, nor why the international community continued to do nothing. He didn’t want charity, he said, all he wanted was peace, and for Israel to be held accountable for the January massacre. Then he showed me where he had started to replant his beloved garden."

To read Dearbhla's full article, click here

Of the 21 people kidnapped on June 30, there is Derek Graham, an Irish electrician; Ishmahil Blagrove, a Jamaican-born journalist based in the UK; : the ship's captain Denis Healey from the UK; British journalist Fathi Jaouadi; Alex Harrison, a British woman; Theresa McDermott from Scotland and Adnan Mormech from the UK.

Their kidnap only highlights the continuing blockades on human rights in Palestine and the Free Gaza Movement are calling on people to see what they can do to help on the following sites:

http://www.freegaza.org/

http://www.miftah.org/Display.cfm?DocId=7209&CategoryId=4
http://sumoud.tao.ca/?q=node/view/76
http://palestinianprisoners.blogspot.com/2009/04/palestinian-prisoners-families-protest_27.html
http://www.btselem.org/english/statistics/Detainees_and_Prisoners.asp