Israeli forces operating near the southern Greek island of Crete stopped over 20 boats from a larger flotilla attempting to breach Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza. According to Israeli officials, around 175 activists who were detained were expected to be transferred to Greece on Thursday.
Activists on the Global Sumud Flotilla said Israeli forces boarded their vessels overnight, damaging engines and detaining some passengers as the boats sailed in international waters near Greece, far from Gaza and Israel, according to AP.
‘Activists enjoying on Israeli boats’: video
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the flotilla was stopped “due to the large numbers of vessels participating in the flotilla and the risk of escalation, and the need to prevent the breach of a lawful blockade.”
“The operation was carried out in international waters peacefully and without any casualties,” the ministry added.
It also shared a video that showed activists enjoying themselves aboard Israeli vessels. “Approximately 175 activists from more than 20 boats of the condom flotilla are now making their way peacefully to Israel,” the ministry quipped.
It added, “the activists enjoying themselves aboard Israeli vessels.”
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also hailed its navy for successfully intercepting and turning back the flotilla.
“Well done to our Navy! I instructed them to prevent a Hamas-supporting flotilla from reaching the shores of Gaza. The mission was executed with complete success,” he said in a post on X.
“No ship and no Hamas supporter reached our territory, and not even our territorial waters,” Netanyahu added. “They were turned back and will return to their countries of origin. They will continue to see Gaza on YouTube.”
The US State Department also backed Israel and condemned the move by flotilla activists. Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said on X, “The US condemns the Global Sumud Flotilla as a baseless, counterproductive stunt organised by a sanctioned pro-Hamas entity.”
“Unlike organized assistance mechanisms coordinated with regional partners thanks to @POTUS’s peace plan, this flotilla circumvents mechanisms designed to ensure humanitarian assistance is received by civilians,” Pigott added. “Our allies should take decisive action against this stunt, and participants should face any relevant legal consequences.”
Activists to be taken to Greece
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said all participants who were taken off the flotilla were unharmed and would be sent to Greece.
“All participants in the provocative flotilla who were taken off the vessels were taken off unharmed,” Sa’ar said. He added that, “In coordination with the Greek government, the individuals transferred from the flotilla vessels to the Israeli vessel will be disembarked on a Greek beach in the coming hours.”
The Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had “asked Israel to withdraw its vessels from the area” and said it offered to “welcome the passengers on its territory and to ensure their safe return to their countries.”
Supporting Israel’s blockade of the flotilla, Sa’ar added that Israel, “successfully blocked attempts to breach the lawful naval blockade on Gaza and the arrival of vessels from the provocative flotilla.”
“We call on anyone who is not interested in provocations but rather in humanitarian aid to Gaza to do so through the BOP. “Israel will not allow the breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza,” he added.
Flotilla organisers condemned Israel’s interception
Flotilla organisers condemned Israel’s interception as “a dangerous and unprecedented escalation,” describing it in a news release as “the abduction of civilians in the middle of the Mediterranean, over 600 miles from Gaza, in full view of the world.”
“This is piracy,” the flotilla organisers said in a statement. “This is the unlawful seizure of human beings on the open sea near Crete, an assertion that Israel can operate with total impunity, far beyond its own borders, with no consequences,” Reuters reported.
“No state had the right to claim, police, or occupy international waters, but Israel had done that, extending its control outward to occupy the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Europe,” it added.
Spanish PM, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani condemn Israel’s action
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez accused Israel of violating international law. “Israel is once again violating international law by assaulting a civilian flotilla in waters that do not belong to it,” Sanchez said on X.
“Our Government is doing everything necessary to protect and assist the detained Spaniards,” he said, while urging the European Union to “suspend the association agreement NOW and demand that Netanyahu comply with the law of our seas.”
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani also condemned Israel’s actions.
“Last night, Israeli forces intercepted and boarded a humanitarian aid flotilla bound for Gaza in international waters off the coast of Greece — unlawfully detaining more than 175 people, including several New Yorkers. My team has been in direct contact with State and Federal partners as we work to confirm the whereabouts and conditions of these New Yorkers. This is a brazen violation of international law. Those detained must be released,” he wrote on X.
This marks the second attempt by Global Sumud flotilla to try in recent months to break an Israeli blockade by carrying humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza. The flotilla departed earlier this month from Barcelona, Spain. Organizers said over 70 boats and about 1,000 participants from across the globe were expected to take part, with additional vessels joining as it moved eastward across the Mediterranean.
(With inputs from wires)