Activists on board a flotilla of vessels carrying aid to Gaza said late Wednesday that they had been intercepted by the Israeli navy in a bid to block them from approaching the besieged Palestinian territory.
“Around 8.30 pm Gaza time (1730 GMT), several vessels of the Global Sumud Flotilla, including the Alma, Sirius and Adara, were illegally intercepted and boarded by Israeli occupation forces in international waters,” the flotilla said, adding that there was “active aggression” being used on their fleet.
“Florida vessel has been deliberately rammed at sea. Yulara, Meteque and others have been targeted with water cannons,” the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a post on Telegram.
The Sirius, Alma and Adara boats were intercepted some 70 nautical miles (80 miles) from the coast of Gaza, according to organisers who shared live positions of the flotilla.
The Global Sumud Flotilla comprises nearly 50 boats and 500 activists, and is carrying a symbolic amount of humanitarian aid to Gaza. The activists on-board include Greta Thunberg, Nelson Mandela's grandson, Mandla Mandela, former Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau and several European lawmakers.
Israeli authorities said the activists were safe and being transferred to Israel. “Greta and her friends are safe and healthy,” said the Israeli Foreign Ministry on X.
The Global Sumud Flotilla also said all passengers on board are unharmed.
Also Read: Aid ship to Gaza with Greta Thunberg hit off Tunisia
Greg Stoker, an American veteran aboard the Ohwayla, one of the boats in the flotilla, said around a dozen naval vessels with their transponders off had approached it.
“They are currently hailing our vessels, telling us to turn off our engines and await further instructions or our boats will be seized and we will face the consequences,” he said in a shaky video posted on Instagram while wearing a red life jacket.
Earlier, the Israeli navy had warned the flotilla against entering waters under it blockade.
“The Israeli navy has reached out to the… flotilla and asked them to change course,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The flotilla, which is the largest attempt yet to break the Israeli maritime blockade of the Gaza strip that has been ongoing for 18 years, began its journey from the Spanish port of Barcelona a month ago, was to reach the shores of Gaza by Thursday morning, organisers had said earlier.
Activists on board said earlier they were prepared for the Israeli navy to intervene as they approached Palestine after a tense night on Wednesday in the Mediterranean Sea. It remained undeterred in its mission to break the Israeli blockade of the coastal strip and reach Palestinians.
“Every minute, we advance a little more,” Thiago Avila, one of the flotilla leaders and spokespeople, told reporters on Wednesday via an online news conference from aboard the Alma.
Israel’s government has accused some of the flotilla members of being linked to Hamas, providing little evidence to support the claim. Activists have strongly rejected the accusations and said Israel was trying to justify potential attacks on them.
Spain, Italy, France react
European governments, including Spain and Italy, which had sent their navy ships to escort the flotilla during part of its journey, urged the activists to turn back and avoid confrontation. But while Italy’s Premier, Giorgia Meloni, said late Tuesday the flotilla’s actions risked undermining US President Donald Trump’s recent proposal for resolving the war in Gaza, Spain’s prime minister defended them.
“We must remember it is a humanitarian mission that wouldn't be taking place if the Israeli government had allowed for the entry of aid,” Pedro Sánchez told reporters on Wednesday. Spaniards taking part would benefit from full diplomatic protection, he added.
“They present no threat nor danger to Israel,” he said.
Italian unions called a general strike for Friday in solidarity with the international aid flotilla headed for Gaza. Protests also sprang up in a number of cities late Wednesday after reports emerged that the ship had been intercepted by military personnel.
Demonstrators halted train traffic in the city of Naples, while police surrounded the Termini railway station in Rome after protestors gathered close to entrances.
“The aggression against civilian ships that were carrying Italian citizens is an extremely serious matter,” the CGIL union said.
The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea stipulates that a state only has jurisdiction up to 12 nautical miles (19 kilometres) from its shores. In general, states don’t have the right to seize ships in international waters, though armed conflict is an exception to this.
The flotilla argues they are a civilian, unarmed group and that the passage of humanitarian aid is guaranteed in international law.
Omer Shatz, an Israeli international law expert who teaches at Sciences Po University in Paris and co-litigated a previous flotilla case before the Israeli supreme court, told The Associated Press that even if the disputed siege of Gaza was considered lawful, “international law paves a humanitarian road from the high seas to Gaza – both in international and national waters off Gaza,” he said.
“If the basic needs of the population are not provided by the occupying power, there is a right to provide humanitarian aid, albeit under certain conditions,” Shatz said.
Israel, for example, would have a right to board and search the vessels carrying aid to verify its cargo, similarly to what it does with aid trucks crossing into Gaza by land.
Follow us
