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Sat, June 26, 2010 | Jpost | Arutz Sheva

A Lebanese ship is seen docked next to an Israeli naval ship in the southern Israeli city of Ashdod. The seized ship had set sail from the Lebanese port of Tripoli in a bid to defy Israel's blockade of Gaza. (May 2009)

The IDF is gearing up for the possible arrival next week of two flotillas of Gaza aid ships – from Iran and Lebanon. IDF sources said that the navy would intercept the ships and would operate under the assumption that hostile elements could be aboard.

Two Iranian ships could arrive sometime next week. Two more ships, one reportedly filled with women, may set sail from Lebanon and try to break the siege. The proximity of Lebanon to Gaza requires the Navy to be on a high level of alert around the clock, the IDF sources said. [Jpost, June 25, 2010]

Iranian parliamentarian Mahmoud Ahmadi Beighash announced Saturday that he and other Iranian lawmakers intend to join a ship headed for Gaza by way of Lebanon.

“A ship is going from Lebanon to Gaza in the course of the current week and the lawmakers will go to Gaza via this ship,” Beighash said in comments to semi-official news agency ISNA cited by Reuters.

The decision to head from Lebanon to Gaza and not Egypt was reached in a meeting with speaker of parliament Ali Larijani according to Beighash.

Earlier in the week an Iranian aid ship which had been due to set sail for the Gaza Strip in the coming days in an attempt to break the Israeli blockade canceled its trip due to Israeli warnings, Iranian officials said Thursday night. [Jpost, June 26, 2010]

The G-8 leaders meeting in Canada today focused their attention on Gaza and Iran. While expressing regret for the loss of life on the Mavi Marmara, the G-8 said it approved of Israel’s decision to set up an independent investigative commission into the incident. In addition, the G-8 asked all parties to abide by UNSC 1860 to guarantee the stream of humanitarian aid to Gaza, calling for a change to existing policies.

G-8 leaders welcomed the Israeli government’s decision to ease the blockade and urged “full and effective implementation of this policy in order to address the needs of Gaza’s population for humanitarian and commercial goods, civilian reconstruction and infrastructure, and legitimate economic activity”. They added that Israel’s security concerns were legitimate and needed to be protected. [Jpost, June 26, 2010]

Earlier this week, Washington warned Lebanon to steer clear of the current effort by various elements to escalate tensions with Israel by attempting to violate its maritime sovereignty over Gaza waters.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the U.S. State Department urged Lebanon to “behave responsibly” and not to try to send aid to the Hamas terrorist-ruled Gaza region by sea.

Instead, organizers who are planning an “aid flotilla” similar to the one sponsored last month by the terror-linked Turkish organization IHH, were told to send their aid via the approved overland routes.

The Beirut-based group said that one of the two boats it plans to send to Gaza from Lebanon has already received approval from the government to set sail for Cyprus.

In order to reach Gaza, however, the boats must also receive approval from the Cypriot authorities prior to departure from their local port. But organizers said they might avoid this problem by simply changing course on their way to Cyprus and heading directly for Gaza.

“Direct delivery by sea is neither appropriate nor responsible, and certainly not effective under the circumstances,” the U.S. statement said. “We, along with our partners in the Quartet, urge all those wishing to deliver goods to do so through established channels so that their cargo can be inspected and transferred via land crossings into Gaza.”

The Quartet – comprised of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations – has repeatedly called on Hamas to officially recognize Israel’s right to exist, renounce violence and uphold prior agreements.

“There is no need for unnecessary confrontations, and we, along with our partners in the Quartet, call on all parties to act responsibly in meeting the needs of the people of Gaza,” the statement continued. [Arutz Sheva, June 24, 2010]

“Israel will continue to prevent ships from reaching Gaza”, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said during a meeting on Wednesday with United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Instead, he said, they will be rerouted to Ashdod, where any goods destined for Gaza will be inspected and then sent through via land crossings. [Arutz Sheva, June 24, 2010]