Israel has deployed a powerful new strategy against the latest would-be Gaza flotilla activists: Bore them to death. For three weeks, the activists aboard the lead flotilla boat, an old freighter renamed the “Tahrir,” have languished in port on the Greek island of Crete.
Greek law is very precise: Before a boat can leave port, its paperwork must be in order.
Curiously enough, militant terrorist groups such as Hamas — whose front organizations in London organized the flotilla — tend not to be very good at paperwork. By contrast, the Israeli lawyers filing applications in the Greek courts are very good at spotting mistakes. Following Greek law, the Cretan harbor authorities have again and again refused the Tahrir permission to depart.