ROME: Israeli forces have intercepted 39 boats carrying aid and foreign activists, including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg, to Gaza, leaving only one vessel still sailing towards the Palestinian enclave, the flotilla organizers said on Thursday.
Various governments of countries with citizens on board expressed their concern at the arrests.
Türkiye’s foreign ministry called Israel’s “attack” on the flotilla “an act of terror” that endangered the lives of innocent civilians. But Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni repeated her criticism of the attempt by those on board the flotilla to reach Gaza.
Cameras broadcasting live feeds from the boats, independently verified, showed Israeli soldiers sporting helmets and night vision goggles boarding the ships, while passengers huddled together in life vests with their hands up.
A video from the Israeli foreign ministry showed Thunberg, the most prominent of the flotilla’s passengers, sitting on a deck surrounded by soldiers.
A screengrab from a live stream video shows Israeli navy forces aboard the Gaza-bound vessel Oxygono, part of the Global Sumud Flotilla. /Global Sumud Flotilla/Handout via Reuters
According to a tracker on the organizer, Global Sumud Flotilla’s website, one boat was still sailing.
“Several vessels of the Hamas-Sumud flotilla have been safely stopped and their passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port,” the Israeli foreign ministry said on X. “Greta and her friends are safe and healthy.”
The flotilla, which set sail in late August, is transporting medicine and food to Gaza and consists of more than 40 civilian vessels with about 500 parliamentarians, lawyers and activists. It’s the highest-profile symbol of opposition to Israel’s blockade of Gaza.
The flotilla’s progress across the Mediterranean Sea garnered international attention as nations including Türkiye, Spain and Italy sent boats or drones in case their nationals required assistance, even as it triggered repeated warnings from Israel to turn back.
The Istanbul chief prosecutor’s office said it had launched an investigation into the detention of 24 Turkish citizens on the vessels on charges including deprivation of liberty, seizure of transport vehicles and damage to property, Türkiye’s state-owned Anadolu news agency reported.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro ordered the expulsion of Israel’s entire diplomatic delegation on Wednesday following the detention of two Colombians in the flotilla and terminated Colombia’s free trade agreement with Israel.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim condemned Israel’s actions and said Israeli forces had detained 23 Malaysians.
Israel’s interception of the flotilla sparked protests in Italy and Colombia, while demonstrations were also called in Greece, Ireland and Türkiye. Italian unions called a general strike for Friday.
Israel’s navy had previously warned the flotilla it was approaching an active combat zone and violating a lawful blockade, and asked organizers to change course. It had offered to transfer any aid peacefully through safe channels to Gaza.
The flotilla is the latest seaborne attempt to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza, much of which has been turned into a wasteland by almost two years of war.
In a statement, Hamas expressed support for the activists and called Israel’s interception of the flotilla a “criminal act”, calling for public protests to condemn Israel.
The boats were about 70 nautical miles off Gaza when they were intercepted, inside a zone that Israel is policing to stop any boats approaching. The organizers said their communications, including the use of a live camera feed from some of the boats, had been scrambled.
Greece said it has been informed that 39 boats from the flotilla are sailing to the Israeli port of Ashdod and that everyone onboard is safe, no violence was exerted, the Greek public broadcaster reported.
Greta Thunberg and members of the crew react aboard a ship, part of the Global Sumud Flotilla, as they sail off Crete island on September 25. /Stefanos Rapanis/Reuters/File
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday that Israel’s interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla was a “grave offence” against “global solidarity and sentiment that is aimed at relieving suffering in Gaza”.
In a statement, Ramaphosa called on Israel to immediately release South Africans and others who were on the flotilla, including liberation hero Nelson Mandela’s grandson, Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela.
The British government is “very concerned” about Israel’s interception of an international aid flotilla bound for Gaza, the Foreign Office said on Thursday, adding that it had made clear to Israel that the situation should be resolved safely.
Australia said it stood ready to provide consular assistance to its affected citizens on board.
“Australia calls on all parties to respect international law, to ensure the safety and humane treatment of those involved,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Italy said that Israel had detained 22 Italians from an aid flotilla, as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni repeated her criticism of their attempt to reach Gaza.
“Obviously we will do everything we can to ensure these people can return to Italy as soon as possible,” Meloni told reporters at a European Union meeting in Denmark.
But she added that “I continue to believe that all this brings no benefit to the Palestinian people”.
Two Italian members of parliament and two Italian members of the European Parliament participated in the flotilla.
The flotilla had hoped to arrive in Gaza on Thursday morning if it was not intercepted.
Israeli officials have repeatedly denounced the mission as a stunt.
Israel has imposed a naval blockade on Gaza since Hamas took control of the coastal enclave in 2007 and there have been several previous attempts by activists to deliver aid by sea.
Organizers of Global Sumud Flotilla, which is transporting medicine and food to Gaza, said earlier that Israeli navy forces stopped several of its boats, and that they were using “active aggression”.
