The Israeli military boards humanitarian vessels headed for Gaza.
Israeli forces broke up a protest that had grown to be one of the most well-known representations of opposition to Israel’s blockade of the enclave on Wednesday by boarding multiple boats carrying international activists delivering aid to Gaza and transporting them to an Israeli port.
The most well-known of the flotilla’s passengers, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, was shown seated on a deck surrounded by soldiers in an Israeli foreign ministry video that Reuters authenticated.
The Israeli foreign ministry said on X that “a number of vessels of the Hamas-Sumud flotilla have been safely stopped and their passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port.” “Greta and her friends are safe and healthy.”
More than 40 civilian boats carrying over 500 lawmakers, attorneys, and activists made up the Global Sumud Flotilla, which was transporting food and medication to Gaza.
As countries like Turkey, Spain, and Italy sent boats or drones in case their citizens needed aid, its passage across the Mediterranean Sea attracted international attention.
The Israeli strike sparked unplanned protests throughout Italy, while Turkey’s foreign ministry referred to Israel’s “attack” on the flotilla as “an act of terror” that put the lives of innocent civilians in jeopardy.
BOATS DETECTED BY ISRAEL POLICES IN THE ZONE
The flotilla is the most recent maritime effort to lift Israel’s siege of Gaza, which has been reduced to a wasteland by nearly two years of conflict.
The organizers of the flotilla condemned the raid on Wednesday, October 1, as a “war crime.” They claimed that no one was hurt despite the military’s use of forceful techniques, such as water cannon.
In a statement, the organizers said that “Israeli Occupation Forces unlawfully intercepted and boarded multiple vessels… in international waters.” Spain urged Israel to safeguard the rights and safety of activists, while Ankara indicated that steps had been taken for Israel to free Turks and other passengers.
The Israeli navy was also charged by the flotilla with attempting to sink the Maria Cristina boat. Reuters was unable to independently verify the account. A request for comment on the claim was not immediately answered by the Israeli military.
“The reports from tonight are really alarming. “It’s a nonviolent effort to bring attention to a terrible humanitarian crisis,” Ireland’s Foreign Minister Simon Harris stated on X.
The boats were caught inside a zone Israel is policing to prevent any boats from coming, some 70 nautical miles from the war-ravaged enclave. Using a live video feed from several of the boats, the organizers claimed that their communications had been jumbled.
Early on Thursday, the flotilla posted on Telegram that Israeli soldiers had boarded another ship, Adara, and that it was unclear what the position of the people on board was.
The flotilla’s own ship monitoring data showed that nine boats had been stopped or intercepted. In a statement, the flotilla’s organizers declared that they “will continue undeterred” in their defiance.
The flotilla had earlier been urged to alter its path by Israel’s navy, which informed it that it was getting close to an area of active conflict and breaching a legal blockade. It had promised to send any aid to Gaza in a secure and nonviolent manner.
Attempting to breach the barrier
The flotilla is the most recent maritime effort to lift Israel’s siege of Gaza, which has been reduced to a wasteland by nearly two years of conflict.
If it wasn’t intercepted, the flotilla had planned to reach Gaza on Thursday morning. On Wednesday, this was the second time the flotilla was approached. The organizers of the operation reported that two Israeli “warships” had surrounded two of the flotilla’s boats and interfered with its communications before sunrise.
Drones assaulted the fleet last week, dropping itching powder and stun grenades on the ships, causing damage but no casualties. As it fights Hamas militants in the coastal enclave, Israel has stated that it will stop at nothing to stop the boats from entering Gaza. It did not comment on the attack.
For safety considerations, Italy and Spain ceased tracking the flotilla after it reached within 150 nautical miles of Gaza, but they still sent out naval ships to assist with any rescue or humanitarian needs. The vessels have also been followed by Turkish drones.
Together, Italy and Greece urged Israel on Wednesday not to harm the activists on board and to turn over the flotilla’s aid to the Catholic Church for indirect delivery to Gaza. The flotilla has previously denied this request.
The mission has been regularly criticized by Israeli officials as a publicity gimmick. In an X post, Israeli ambassador to Italy Jonathan Peled stated, “This systematic refusal (to hand over the aid) demonstrates that the objective is not humanitarian, but provocative.”
PRIOR Efforts to Provide Assistance
Francesca Albanese, the leading UN expert on Palestinian rights, stated during a press conference organized by the organizers on Wednesday that any attempt to intercept the flotilla would be a “violation of international law,” as Israel lacked legal jurisdiction over the waters near Gaza.
Since Hamas seized control of the coastal enclave in 2007, Israel has maintained a naval embargo on Gaza, despite multiple prior attempts by activists to transport relief by sea.
In 2010, a flotilla of six ships carrying 700 pro-Palestinian activists from 50 nations was boarded by Israeli military, resulting in the deaths of nine protestors. As they reached Gaza in June of this year, Israeli naval troops arrested Thunberg and eleven other crew members from a small ship that was organized by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a pro-Palestinian organization.
Following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led onslaught on Israel, which left almost 1,200 people dead and 251 taken hostage back to Gaza, according to Israeli estimates, Israel launched its Gaza operation. According to Gaza health authorities, the offensive has killed more over 65,000 Palestinians in Gaza.