Foreign press leaves 'Victoria' presentation in anger

Opportunity lost: After waiting over an hour in the sun, foreign journalists depart rather than view weapons on Iranian arms ship.

By LAHAV HARKOV
Victoria Raid 311 (photo credit: IDF)
Victoria Raid 311
(photo credit: IDF)
Angry foreign reporters left a press conference on Wednesday which displayed the weapons aboard the Victoria.
The event was meant to show foreigners the successes of the Israeli commandos and to justify the naval blockade on Gaza, but the extensive security checks at the entrance led many reporters to leave.
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Each member of the foreign media was subject to a full-body check, as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak both spoke at the press conference.
"We were told to get here at 12," Jerusalem Post video reporter Ben Spier explained, "and we waited about an hour and a half in the sun. A lot of foreign journalists decided to walk away," he explained.
Many reporters found that by the time security checks ended, the conference had already started.