Flotilla captain: Passenger boat sabotaged in Greek port
By JPOST.COM STAFF
LAST UPDATED: 06/28/2011 14:34
"I clearly believe this is sabotage by those who wish the boat not to participate in the Freedom Flotilla," Thodoris Boukas says.
Thodoris Boukas says a ship was sabotaged. Photo: Screenshot
A
ship captain participating in a protest flotilla scheduled to sail to Gaza this
week said on Tuesday that one of the passenger boats was sabotaged in a
Greek port the previous day.
In a video featured on the
Freedom Flotilla's website, captain Thodoris Boukas explains how the
sabotage was discovered and said "I clearly believe it is sabotage by
those who wish the boat not to participate in the Freedom Flotilla."
The video also shows footage shot by a diver of the boat's propellers.
"Today
we came here to test the boat, we added some fuel, started the engines,
and at some point, one of the engines ceased [to work] as if a rope was
tangled in its propeller. That's what we thought in the first place. We
looked around, and there was no sign of the rope," Boukas said.
RELATED:
FM: Flotilla participants are blood-seeking
terrorists
Security
cabinet approves plans to stop flotilla
Analysis: A
season of flotillas and marches
IDF: Some
flotilla activists planning to kill soldiers
After
asking a diver to help determine the problem, the captain said "The
boat has been sabotaged. Someone has rasped the axle that is made by
stainless steel, a very hard material."
He noted the tool used was very specific, indicating that the act was calculated.
The captain's statement comes after the Free Gaza Movement on Monday vowed to continue with its plans to sail the flotilla to Gaza despite repeated warnings from Israel not to do so.
The
group said in a statement that "Israel's best efforts to stop our boats
at port, including pressure on governments, threats against insurance
and communications companies, intimidation of human rights defenders,
frivolous lawsuits and other underhanded tactics, have thus far failed.
The Freedom Flotilla has set sail."