A second trip to Gaza is planned for Monday, Sept. 22, by the El Cerrito-based Free Gaza Movement after it successfully penetrated an Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory in August, using two small “peace boats” and a group of international activists.
Forty-six human rights workers — Americans, Israelis and Palestinians — traveled by boat from Cyprus to Gaza, where they were greeted by thousands of Palestinians on Aug. 23. Israel imposed the blockade after Hamas seized control of Gaza in June 2007.
Karin Pally, a spokeswoman for the Free Gaza Movement, deemed the initial voyage “a success,” while pro-Israel groups such as the Jewish Community Relations Council called it “a publicity stunt” and “a collaboration with Hamas and everything Hamas stands for.”
The August event garnered international attention. Lauren Booth, the sister-in-law of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, was among the cadre of activists who distributed hearing aids and balloons to children.
An offshoot organization, the Marin-based 14 Friends of Palestine founded by Jane Jewell of San Rafael, helped raise funds for the trip.
“This was a journey by people whose hearts and minds were moved by the plight of the Palestinians,” Pally said from her office in Santa Monica.
Roughly 30 people made up the original Free Gaza Movement group. Today, according to group’s Web site, people of many ages and backgrounds have aligned themselves with the organization’s mission to free the 1.4 million Palestinians confined to the Gaza Strip.
“Palestinians can’t get in and out at all,” Pally said. “If somebody wouldn’t let me go beyond my house, I’d be frantic.”
Yitzhak Santis, director of the Middle East Project with the Jewish Community Relations Council based in San Francisco, has identified roughly 65 Bay Area organizations of various sizes and ideologies that are “consistently and often harshly critical of Israel.”
Santis said he hesitates to group all the organizations under one “anti-Israel” umbrella and cited ways to differentiate between them.
“You’ve got groups that are anti-Zionist, which seek Israel’s demise out there loudly and proudly,” he said. “Then there are others that are critical of Israel’s policies, but seek a peaceful solution that includes two states.
“Yet, they go about it in a way that is unbalanced, treating Israel as the villain and Palestinians as the victims.”
What Santis said he finds most troubling about groups in the “free Gaza” movement is the indirect assistance they are providing to Hamas, which Israel considers to be a terrorist group.
“Opening the blockade in Gaza will ultimately help Hamas smuggle weapons,” said Santis. “How could a group of progressives find such a common cause in an organization like Hamas?”
The JCRC is taking a proactive approach in its response to the Gaza groups, such as scheduling an array of speakers and pro-Israel programming at organizations such as churches and community centers throughout the Bay Area.
“As long as there is turmoil in the Middle East, these groups will be active,” Santis said. “Their presence requires the Jewish community to step up to the plate and be part of the effort to defend Israel.”
Nearly four years ago, Jewell formed 14 Friends, an offshoot of the Free Gaza Movement.
The group does its fundraising only in Marin, but it works for and supports pro-Palestinian efforts throughout the Bay Area.
Jewell and 13 others held the first meeting of 14 Friends at her home in San Rafael. The group has since grown to 24 people.
Most recently, the group conducted a vigil outside of Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s office in San Francisco on Aug. 21, the day before the Free Gaza Movement launched its two boats from Cyprus.
“I’m sure there were vigils all over the world,” said Jewell. “There was so much media attention focused on this incident. We sent two little fishing boats; they weren’t exactly war ships.”
Jewell said her efforts have brought more than just attention.
“Somebody’s threatened to burn my house down,” Jewell said. “The more threats, the more it means we’re making an impact. I’ve never had a death threat — I’m not that important.”