“I kept Israel attack flash-carts in my hands even when praying or sleeping,” says Echorouk photographer

Abdelhalim Maamar, a survivor of the Israeli attack on the Freedom Flotilla talks to Echorouk how he hided his camera’s flash-cart which shows the crime.

• What does the video taken by Israel contain?
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• The one-hour seized video shows the Zionist crime against the Flotilla. It shows how the people in the ship were defending themselves using fire houses and how the Israeli soldiers were moving from their boats to the ship. The five martyrs’ pictures are also shown in the video. I focused on shooting the injured people and how they were receiving firs-aid treatment. I remembered I interviewed 50 injured using my camera.
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• There were photographers from well-known satellite channels and photographers from an organisation. Do you think that they did not take pictures of the crime?
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• There were photographers from well-known satellite channels including Al Jazeera. They have specialised equipments but I do not think that no one of them shot the crime. Yet, the Israeli soldiers took all their cameras even their mobile phones.
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• How did you manage to keep the video with you?
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• I had two cameras with me. I was keeping one in my bag in the room and I used it in the beginning of the trip. When I heard that Israel may come and surround us, I put it in my bag while I carried the other camera in my hand all the time. I did not leave it even in prayer time. I hided the flash-carts in my shoe insole but one of them was detected by the Israeli scanner.
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• Did you see other photographers taking pictures of the attack?
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• I saw many photographers taking pictures. I remember Al Jazeera’s photographer who was next tom me for many times. I also saw other photographers from some satellite channels taking pictures of the attack. Though, I think the Israeli soldiers took their cameras because they were big.