2ND LEAD

Irish ship heads towards Gaza with Nobel peace winner

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 02 June 2010, 13:27 GMT]
Irish Foreign Minister Micheal Martin on Wednesday urged Israel to let a new ship, MV Rachel Corrie, which is already bound for Gaza, carrying construction material, medical and educational equipments. On board the cargo ship, operated by Free Gaza Movement (FGM), is Northern Irish Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire, with 14 other activists. A former United Nations diplomat, Denis Halliday, who was one of the judges of the People's Tribunal on Sri Lanka held Dublin in January 2010, is also on board the ship. Israel has responded by saying that it would intercept the vessel, offering two options: either to hand over the aid to Israel or to enter Gaza through Egypt. The activists have said neither option is viable.

Mairead Corrigan Maguire is one of the main supporters of the Dublin Tribunal and both Denis Halliday and Corrigan Magquire were instrumental with the backing of Irish government in initiating the humanitarian mission towards Gaza.

Corrigan Magquire is one of the main supporters of the Dublin Tribunal.

"I again repeat my urgent call to the Israeli government to allow safe passage of the Irish owned vessel, the MV Rachel Corrie, which is still sailing towards Gaza to deliver its consignment of humanitarian aid," Breakingnews.ie reported the Irish Foreign Minister as saying.

MV Rachel Corrie is expected to reach the 'exclusion zone' around Gaza on Friday or Saturday.

The ship is named after a 23-year-old American activist, Rachel Aliene Corrie, killed by an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) bulldozer, while she was attempting to prevent it from destroying Palestinian houses in Gaza Strip in March 2003 during the Second Intifada.

The relations between Dublin and Tel Aviv are already strained following the use of Irish passports by Mossad agents in the assassination of a senior Hamas commander in Dubai on January 20.

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