EXCERPT:
The Palestinian-American academic told Haaretz that although he will participate in the fundraising event for the ship, he will not be sailing in the planned flotilla itself. In a reference to the Israel Defense Forces, he added: "Given the national-religious hierarchy which determines what the IDF can do to whom, the fact that the ship is American will make it harder to deal with it as the Mavi Marmara was dealt with."
The Mavi Marmara was boarded by the Israel Navy at the end of May while part of a flotilla attempting to run the blockade. Nine people on board the ship were killed in the confrontation with naval commandos.
Khalidi said he visited relatives in the Gaza Strip a number of years ago. He characterized the blockade as a measure "imposed on a population of 1. 5 million people who are effectively imprisoned, and most of whom are deprived of living a normal life."
When asked by Haaretz if he was aware of the proposed name of the ship and whether the choice of name was appropriate, Khalidi said: "I am not one of the organizers of this effort, and had no knowledge that this name had been chosen. If the name is a problem for the [Obama] administration, it can simply insist publicly that Israel lift the siege. That of course would require it to respond to the systematic mendacity of those in Congress and elsewhere who support the siege. It is shameful that the U.S. and Egyptian governments are complicit in this indefensible siege."
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