Unfortunately, I fear, Scott Hamann’s documentary of the Gaza blockade will be more a Hamas propaganda tool than a humanitarian portrayal (“Man tells of capture by Israelis in raid,” June 11, page 17).

He stated all he wanted was to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza and to deal with politics in a different way. What Hamann failed to mention was Israel agreed to allow all of the flotilla’s humanitarian aid transferred to Gaza from an Israeli port. Members of the flotilla would have been allowed to accompany the aid.

The Israelis wanted to inspect for weapons and war material. Why? Because Hamas has fired thousands of missiles and rockets at Israeli towns since the Israelis withdrew entirely from Gaza.

Hamas, which was democratically elected by the Gaza populace, refuses to recognize Israel. Does Hamann know that the Hamas charter states, “Israel will exist, and will continue to exist until Islam abolishes it, as it abolished that which was before it”?

Is he aware of reports the so-called peace activists who attacked the Israelis on the Mavi Marmara were allied with the IHH, a Turkish militant group with links to Al-Qaeda. Was he aware that two days before the confrontation, Al-Jazeera reported the so-called peace activists shouting, “Khaybar, Khaybar, ya Yahoud,” a reference to the slaughter of Jews in the seventh century? Does he know that Hamas flaunts the International Committee of the Red Cross by refusing the Red Cross access to Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who was kidnapped four years ago? It is easy to blame the blockade for Gaza’s problems.

When one understands the context in which Israel acts, then one understands Israel’s defending itself. Either Hamann is naïve of Hamas’s true intentions, and those allied with Hamas, or he openly supports their cause of violence against Israel. I guess we will have to wait for the documentary.

Peter Lewis

Portland