Skipper vows he will return to Gaza
A Portsmouth sailor who was locked up for six days after trying to take aid to Gaza has vowed to continue helping people there.
Denis Healey says the Israeli Navy threatened to fire at his boat before boarding it and arresting him and 20 campaigners.
Speaking as he was reunited with his partner Ruth Baker yesterday he said: 'I will do it again.
'I'm not an activist, I'm the skipper of the boat but what the Israelis are doing is totally illegal.
'It's an illegal embargo on the people of Gaza.
'We were just trying to help those people.'
Mr Healey, who was born in Portsmouth and lived in Wymering for 20 years, but now lives outside Limassol in Cyprus, was held along with the campaigners at Givon jail in Ramla, Israel, before a judge ordered their deportation on Monday.
Their boat, Spirit of Humanity, which was paid for by the Free Gaza movement, was seized by the Israelis and Mr Healey does not think they will get it back.
Mr Healey said: 'We counted at least eight boats on the radar, they were fairly large warships.
'They gave us a 10 minute warning that if we didn't turn round they would fire.
'We didn't turn round and they repeated the threat after five minutes.
'From then on they jammed the GPS so I could only navigate by compass.
'The boats were coming in and trying to push us over to Israeli waters and then they boarded us.'
He added: 'Once we were in Givon we were made very welcome by the inmates, they gave us bottles of coke and biscuits.
'But the prison made it very hard for the lawyers and people from the British Consulate to see us.
'I'm glad to be out and back home.'
While Mr Healey plans to catch up on some much needed sleep he has already thought about what to do next.
He said: 'All my paperwork is still on the boat.
'They took my yachtmaster licence and my radio licence and they haven't given the radio licence back.
'As soon as I can arrange it I have got to look at what boat to buy.'
FREE GAZA CAMPAIGN
Hilary Smith, a volunteer with the Free Gaza movement, who had been working in Britain to help resolve the dispute, said the voyage was to raise awareness of the blockade and to challenge it.
'As far as the movement is concerned, we are not going to stop challenging the siege,' she said.
'We have had five successful voyages and now three that have been stopped, including this one.'
The Britons who were deported along with Denis Healey were Alex Harrison, 31, an activist, from north London, Adie Mormech, 31, a human rights worker from Manchester, Theresa McDermott, 42, a postal worker from Edinburgh, Fathi Jaoudi, an activist, from London, and the documentary filmmaker, Ishmahil Blagrove.
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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