GREECE DEEPENS MILITARY TIES WITH ISRAEL
Tel Aviv, 23 Shawal 1436/8 August 2015 (MINA) – Greek forces in conjunctin with Italian military forces will begin training in Israel.
In July Israeli helicopter pilots completed an 11-day combat training exercise near Greece’s Mount Olympus, and in the month of May the Syriza government signed a new military accord with Israel that is on par the deal they currently have with the US according to a report in Electronic Intifada. This will give them immunity to each others military personnal whilst undergoing training in each others territory.
This comes on the back of the Syriza-nominated Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias who travelled to Israel for high-level talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries,” Worldbulletin quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.
Israeli helicopters in Greece
According to an Israeli air force press release, “Israeli-Greek cooperation is gaining momentum over the last years and in light of the success of recent deployments, the mutual flights will probably continue in 2016.”
“We understand the great importance of the joint activity with the State of Israel, which contributes to the security of both countries,” Greece’s Colonel Dormitis Stephzanki, the commander of Larissa Airbase where the Israeli helicopters were based during the exercises, is quoted as saying.
“Over the past few days we have been working together in a special way,” Dormitis added. “The common language, the deep friendship and the things we’ve learnt together have contributed to the enhancement of cooperation between the forces.”
“We flew over mountainous areas that do not exist in Israel and practiced long-distance flights from the airbase in Israel to Greece,” Israel’s Lt. Col. Matan, a commander of a squadron of US-built Apache helicopters said.
The Apache – named after Native American peoples targeted by genocidal colonial expansion in North America – has been extensively used by Israel to carry out extrajudicial executions of Palestinians.
It was used during massacres of civilians in Gaza last summer.
Col. Y, a commander of an Israeli reconnaissance unit, described Israel’s participation in the exercise as “historic,” adding that “it was the first time the intelligence-gathering aircraft had worked with foreign aircraft in challenging, unknown terrain.”
Greece Complicity in Israeli war crimes
According to The Jerusalem Post, Greek helicopter pilots will train in Israel in coming months.
Greek fighter jets “will also arrive as part of the multinational Blue Flag exercise, to be held over southern Israel,” the newspaper reports.
A report in Haaretz in June also revealed a that Italian, Greek and US air forces will take part in the exercise in a joint exercise.
Amnesty International last month published their own inquiry nto Israel’s attack on the Gazan town of Rafah – once again it concluded that hundreds of civilians were killed as Israel continued its atrocities and war crimes.
“Public statements by Israeli army commanders and soldiers after the conflict provide compelling reasons to conclude that some attacks that killed civilians and destroyed homes and property were intentionally carried out and motivated by a desire for revenge – to teach a lesson to, or punish, the population of Rafah,” Amnesty found.
The UN report and Amnesty has called for Israel to be held accountable for the war crimes committed in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Evidently, Greece’s and Italy’s ostensibly left-wing governments, and of course the US administration of President Barack Obama, only offer Israel complicity and rewards. (T/P011/R04)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
