Franks Calls Flotilla Conflict a Blatant Provocation; Says Israel Has No Option But to Act in Self-Defense

For Immediate Release
Contact: Bethany Haley or Ben Carnes at 202-225-4576

Franks Calls Flotilla Conflict the Result of a Blatant Provocation;
Says Israel Has No Option But to Act in Self-Defense

June 3, 2010 - Congressman Trent Franks (AZ-02) today responded to ongoing criticism of Israel following this weekend’s incident near Gaza where Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) personnel engaged a flotilla of six ships attempting to overrun an Israeli naval blockade. Reports have indicated that individuals on board the ships were carrying weapons and attacked Israeli soldiers as they were trying to stop the advance of the flotilla. The blockade exists to keep the terrorist organization Hamas, which has routinely launched attacks against innocent Israeli citizens, from supplying its forces with weapons and other materials while allowing necessary humanitarian supplies to reach those living in Gaza.

Franks made the following remarks:

"The conflict that took place aboard the Turkish flotilla was a completely unnecessary and deliberate attempt to provoke Israel
to action. The Gaza blockade was put into place in an attempt to prevent Hamas from continuing to use the Gaza strip as a launching pad for literally thousands and thousands of rockets fired into innocent Israeli citizen populations. Humanitarian shipments into Gaza are routinely used to smuggle weapons and other dangerous materials into Gaza for Hamas. For that reason, both Israel and Egypt
have had policies in place to screen shipments and then to transport the humanitarian aid to the refugees in Gaza.

"The IHH, which is on the Israeli terror list and has known ties to Hamas and al Qaeda, had no legitimate reason to try to force a naval shipment of supplies through the blockade other than setting up a situation where Israel would, in self defense, be forced to interdict them. And it is clear that the "peace activists" who attacked the Israeli commandos were well-prepared to carry out the brutal assaults that took place the moment the Israelis reached the ship's deck. The Israeli forces were savagely beaten, stabbed, and shot; and while the loss of life is tragic, it seems unequivocally clear that Israel acted in self-defense. "As Prime Minister Netanyahu stated today, Israel is told that it has the right to self-defense until it exercises that right; at which point, Israel is condemned by the international community as 'guilty until proven guilty.' "It is critically important for the Obama Administration to refrain from showing even a hint of daylight between Israel and the United States. We must never forget that our two nations face common enemies who would see our countries and our way of life wiped from the face of the earth; and these terrorist groups will exploit even the smallest seeming division between our two nations. The United States must maintain a strong position of support for Israel as the U.N. once again tries to make them a punching bag for the rest of the world. The Obama Administration must also commit to vetoing any resolution from U.N. Organizations like the Security Council or the Human Rights Council that would condemn Israel and encourage the terrorist groups who provoked the raid."

Congressman Franks is serving his fourth term in the U.S. House of Representatives, and is a member of the Committee on Armed Services, Strategic Forces Subcommittee, Oversight & Investigations Subcommittee, Military Readiness Subcommittee, Committee on the Judiciary, Constitution Subcommittee, and is Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law.