The Israeli navy has seized boats delivering aid to Gaza and taken into custody the activists onboard, including Swedish environmental advocate Greta Thunberg.
Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that several ships belonging to the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) had been “successfully halted” and the individuals aboard were being moved to an Israeli port.
It mentioned that the navy had instructed the vessels to alter their route as they were “nearing a live combat area”.
The GSF characterized the interception as “unlawful” and “not a defensive act,” but rather “a blatant act of desperation”.
The organization claimed that one boat in the flotilla was “intentionally rammed at sea” and stated that other vessels faced water cannon attacks.
“This clearly demonstrates the extreme measures the occupier is willing to take to keep Gaza impoverished and isolated,” GSF posted on social media.
“They will assault a peaceful civilian endeavor because the success of humanitarian intervention translates to the failure of their blockade.”
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs asserted that the flotilla had been alerted it was “breaching a lawful naval blockade” that encompasses the waters adjacent to Gaza – although it remains uncertain if the boats had entered the blockade area.
It shared footage of the interception showing Thunberg seated on a boat’s deck, receiving water and a jacket from an Israeli military member.
Livestreams from the vessels imply that not every one of the 44 ships has been boarded and cleared.
The Israeli government, which labeled the GSF’s effort to deliver humanitarian assistance to the war-affected Gaza as “provocation”, stated: “Greta and her colleagues are safe and in good health.”
The GSF reported that multiple ships, including the Alma, one of the primary vessels, along with the Surius and the Adara, had been intercepted and boarded.
Before that, it accused the Israeli military of “deliberately damaging ship communications to hinder distress signals and disrupt the livestream of their unlawful boarding of the boats”.
It mentioned the flotilla was 70 nautical miles from Gaza’s coast when the intervention took place. The group had anticipated its vessels would reach Gaza on Thursday morning.
Demonstrations have erupted in Greece, Italy, Tunisia, and Turkey against Israel’s interception of the flotilla.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has ordered the expulsion of all remaining Israeli diplomats from the country in reaction to the interception, denouncing it as an “international crime by Netanyahu”.
Petro also annulled Colombia’s free trade agreement with Israel, established in 2020, and called for the release of two Colombians aboard the flotilla.
Irish Deputy Prime Minister Simon Harris termed the reports “disturbing” and expressed expectations for Israel to adhere to international law, with at least seven Irish citizens among those detained, including Sinn Féin senator Chris Andrews.
Israeli foreign ministryIsrael has previously thwarted two initiatives by activists to provide aid via ship to Gaza, in June and July.
While the Israeli government has depicted the flotilla as a “selfie yacht”, Thunberg has countered that assertion, stating to the BBC on Sunday: “I don’t think anyone would gamble their life for a publicity stunt.”
International aid organizations are striving to deliver food and medicine into the Palestinian region but indicate that Israel is restricting the inflow of supplies.
Israel argues it is attempting to prevent those supplies from reaching Hamas. It, along with the US, has supported an alternative food distribution system, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which the UN refuses to engage with, criticizing its establishment as unethical.
A UN-supported organization confirmed the previous month that there was famine in Gaza, and the UN’s humanitarian chief stated this was a direct effect of Israel’s “systematic obstruction” of aid entering the region.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed this claim as an “outright lie”.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot remarked in a statement that France had guaranteed “that any potential boarding operation would occur under the most favorable security conditions”.
Italy’s foreign minister expressed he had been reassured by Israel that its military forces would refrain from using violence against the 500 individuals aboard, including politicians from France and Italy.
Antonio Tajani stated: “The boarding was organized, we are discussing it… with [Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon] Saar to ensure there would be no violent actions from the Tel Aviv military, and this has been assured to me.”
Simon Harris, Ireland’s tánaiste (deputy prime minister), stated his nation “anticipates international law being upheld and all individuals on the flotilla being treated in strict compliance with it”.
In Gaza, Israel is escalating its offensive against Gaza City as Hamas considers its reaction to a new US proposal aimed at ending the conflict. Arab and Turkish intermediaries are believed to be urging Hamas for a favorable response, but a senior Hamas official indicated that the armed group is likely to reject it.
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz issued a final warning to the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the city to evacuate towards the south, asserting that those who remain during the operation against Hamas would be “terrorists and supporters of terror”.
The International Committee of the Red Cross declared that “according to international humanitarian law, civilians should be protected whether they choose to stay or leave Gaza City”.
