Israel cracks down on peace activists at Brussels Holiday Fair - Theatre against arms trade leads to arrests and charges of falsification

On 7th February 2010, 8 peace activists entered the Brussels Holiday Fair and impersonated flight attendants of the Israeli airline company El Al. They handed out fake free plane tickets to Israel, which referred to the fact that El Al contributes to the transport of arms to the country. Their theatrical intervention didn't go down well with the Israeli security agents who were observing the Fair. They were alarmed when people started asking questions about the vouchers at the Israeli booth and reacted by getting all the “air hostesses” arrested.
The matter turned out to be politically sensitive, and the security personnel of Brussels Expo (where the Holiday Fair was taking place) stated that they received orders from the Israeli Embassy to detain the actors. El Al will probably press charges against the activists for using their logo on the leaflets, and the Israeli Board of Tourism and the Israeli Embassy were keen on legal action against the activists. What at first seemed to be a regular arrest, ended with 20 hours of detention and questioning by a public prosecutor.

For more information: http://vredesactie.org