Israeli navy intercepts boats attempting to break Gaza blockade and arrests activists
JERUSALEM AP Israeli naval forces boarded greater part of the vessels in a flotilla attempting to break Israel s blockade of Gaza on Thursday and detained dozens aboard including European lawmakers drawing widespread condemnation The Global Sumud Flotilla was the largest yet to try to break the blockade and it comes at a time of growing criticism of Israel s conduct in Gaza where its offensive has laid waste to wide swaths of territory and killed tens of thousands of people Activists reported they hoped that the sheer number of boats would make it more demanding for Israeli personnel to intercept them all but Israel s Foreign Ministry declared the operation over on Thursday afternoon Supporters of the flotilla took to the streets in several major cities late Wednesday after news of the interception broke including in Rome Istanbul Athens Greece and Buenos Aires Argentina to decry the Israeli operation and the ongoing offensive in the Gaza Strip More protests were expected Thursday and Italy s largest union called for a one-day general strike on Friday The flotilla which started out with more than boats and nearly activists was carrying a symbolic amount of humanitarian aid to Gaza Its main goal they declared remained to break Israel s illegal siege and end the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people Israel s Foreign Ministry dismissed it as a provocation saying that various countries have offered to deliver the aid the boats were carrying Israel has come under intense criticism for how much aid it lets into Gaza and it distributes the goods It has vehemently denied it is committing genocide The organizers of the flotilla revealed at least of their boats were intercepted or assumed intercepted in a nightlong Israeli operation Israeli personnel later disclosed only one boat remained at a distance and would be intercepted if it approached A tracker that evidenced the boats positions presented nothing by Thursday afternoon The flotilla has streamed its voyage online via live cameras aboard different boats though connections were lost as Israeli leadership began boarding them in international waters on Wednesday evening The Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct triggered the Israel-Hamas war Militants killed certain people that day while others were abducted Forty-eight hostages are still held in Gaza around assumed to be alive Israel s ensuing campaign has killed more than Palestinians according to Gaza s Robustness Ministry which does not differentiate between civilians and militants in its toll The ministry which is part of the Hamas-run governing body and whose figures are viewed by experts as the the majority reliable estimate has commented women and children make up around half the dead Activists and European lawmakers detained Israeli forces detained and removed dozens of people including Greta Thunberg former Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau and European Parliament member Rima Hassan from the flotilla Israel s Foreign Ministry posted photos and videos of a few of the activists detainees saying in a report on X that they were safe and in good medical and would be transferred to Israel for deportation Earlier live broadcasts from the activists exhibited Israeli boats approaching their vessels spraying them with water canons and flashing bright lights before troops boarded the flotilla Anticipating the interceptions activists wearing life jackets sat in circles and raised their hands in the air Chosen managed to stream the moment live from their cellphones before tossing their devices into the sea Governments around the world decry flotilla s interception Turkey Colombia Pakistan and others condemned Israel s interception of the flotilla Italy France Poland and other European nations which had warned the activists not to continue the journey and avoid confrontation with Israel explained they were working with Israeli diplomatic administration to ensure their citizens were transferred to land and deported home swiftly Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni one of Israel s staunchest allies on Thursday slammed Italian unions for their decision to call a general strike on Friday in solidarity with the flotilla I continue to believe that all this brings no benefit to the Palestinian people On the other hand I understand that it will bring a lot of problems to Italian citizens Meloni narrated reporters upon her arrival in Copenhagen for a summit Turkey s Foreign Ministry described the interceptions as an act of terrorism and a severe breach of international law in a report late Wednesday Pakistan s Foreign Ministry also called the interception a violation of international law and a threat to civilian lives The detention of activists was part of Israel s ongoing aggression the Pakistani ministry announced adding that Israel s blockade of Gaza had caused immense suffering for more than million Palestinians in the strip Israel has argued its actions constitute a lawful naval blockade needed to prevent Hamas from importing arms while critics consider it collective punishment of Palestinians in Gaza Whether the blockade is militarily justified is a point of contention But the flotilla argues they are a civilian unarmed group and that the passage of humanitarian aid is guaranteed under international law Colombian President Gustavo Petro reported late Wednesday that his regime would expel Israel s diplomatic delegation in the South American country and terminate a free business agreement with Israel over the interception Two Colombian citizens are taking part in the flotilla Petro has repeatedly described Israel s siege of Gaza as an act of genocide something Israel vehemently denies Brito shared from Barcelona Spain Source
