Desk Report:
Israel has seized all but one of the ships of the Global Sumud flotilla, a flotilla of ships carrying humanitarian aid and personnel to Gaza. The country said the other ship had not yet been seized because it was far from the so-called “active war zone.”
A statement from Israel’s Foreign Ministry described the international humanitarian aid operation, the Global Sumud flotilla, as a “Hamas-Sumud provocation.” The country claimed that “all passengers” seized from the humanitarian flotilla are “healthy and safe.”
The statement said, “The Hamas-Sumud provocation has ended. None of the Hamas-Sumud provocation vessels were able to enter the active war zone or break the legitimate naval blockade. All passengers are healthy and safe. They are safely arriving in Israel, from where they will be returned to Europe.”
Israel also said, “The last other vessel in this provocation is still at a distance.” If it comes forward, attempts to enter active war zones and break the blockade will be prevented.
According to Flotilla Tracker, there were 44 ships in the Global Sumud Flotilla. Among them are Swedish climate and rights activist Greta Thunberg, Bangladeshi photographer Shahidul Alam, and South African anti-apartheid legend Nelson Mandela’s grandson Nkosi Zelvelil Mandela, among many others. The Israeli navy is intercepting the Sumud Flotilla’s ships with several warships.
According to Al-Jazeera, the first batch of seized ships may be taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod, just 20 kilometers from the blockaded Gaza Strip. Israel has said that the detainees will be flown to Europe after the process is completed.
Israeli forces directly intercepted the flotilla for the first time last night while it was in the Mediterranean Sea, 129 kilometers from Gaza. The Global Relief Flotilla is a global initiative to bring aid to Gaza by sea. The flotilla consists of more than 40 civilian vessels. There are 500 people on about 44 vessels in the flotilla. Among them are citizens of the United States, Spain, Ireland, France, Belgium, as well as elected representatives of the European Parliament, lawyers, human rights activists, doctors and journalists.
