Following are excerpts from an interview with Aisha Dahesh, an Algerian participant in the Freedom Flotilla. The program aired on Al-Quds TV on December 19, 2011.

Aisha Dahesh: It has been my dream ever since I was a little girl, nine years ago, and it has been my main prayer every Ramadhan, to be martyred on the threshold of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. When I used to say this, they would call me crazy, because I was talking about something that was unattainable. As soon as I heard that there was a flotilla heading towards Gaza, I called the coordinator of that flotilla.

Interviewer: How did you get his phone number?

Aisha Dahesh: It appeared in an Algerian daily. He said to me: We cannot take girls with us because it is dangerous. I said to him: How dangerous? To the point of martyrdom? I’m ready. He said that I needed my parents’ permission, and I told him they agreed.

Interviewer: You said this before you talked to them?

Aisha Dahesh: Because of my upbringing, I was sure they would not object.

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