Between 175 and 211 activists were removed from 22 vessels on Thursday, with the numerical discrepancy coming from conflicting accounts by the Israeli foreign ministry, which espouses the former, and the Flotilla organizers that have stated the higher figure, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
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Prominent activists and organizers Thiago Ávila and Saif Abu Keshek were not among the civilians brought to Greece, Israel’s foreign ministry said on Friday.
“Saif Abu Keshek, suspected of affiliation with a terrorist organization, and Thiago Ávila suspected of illegal activity, will be brought to Israel for questioning,” it said in a post on X, adding that “Israel will not allow the breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza.”
Before his departure, Avila told The New Region that the mission’s scope extends “not only to Gaza and Palestine” and warned that “the violence spreads across and affects the entire world.”
“They’re now attacking Lebanon, Iran, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Venezuela, and Cuba,” he said, referring to both the US and Israel. “They’re threatening Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico.”
Huwaida Arraf, a Palestinian-American human rights attorney and Freedom Flotilla organizer, told The New Region Thursday that 15 to 20 vessels from Turkey and seven from Greece – representing both the GSF and the Freedom Flotilla – were expected to join the mission the same day as the interception.
She added that the organizations were developing a new course of action following the interception, stating they would not stop until the blockade is breached.
Rome and Berlin said in a joint statement on Thursday that they were monitoring the situation “with deep concern,” with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemning the “seizure” in international waters and demanding the “immediate release of all Italians unlawfully detained, full respect for international law, and guarantees for the physical safety of the people on board.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez accused Israel of “once again violating international law by attacking a civilian flotilla in waters that do not belong to it,” urging the European Union to stop bilateral accords.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, defined the interception a “total success,” describing participants as “Hamas supporters.”
The Global Sumud Flotilla, the biggest humanitarian fleet that has sought to breach the Israeli blockade of Gaza, set sail from Sicily on Sunday, with activists from nearly 60 countries manning a fleet of over 80 vessels — nearly double the size of the previous effort.
Last September’s Flotilla mission, which brought together boats from Sicily, Barcelona, Genoa, and Tunisia, ended in a violent seziure that activists said broke international law. The crew chose to press on even after their ships were targeted by suspected drone-based arson attacks off the coasts of Tunisia and Crete. Yet, on the night of October 1, the Israeli navy intercepted and boarded the vessels in international waters, about 72 miles out at sea.
Despite the agreements stating that waters up to 12 nautical miles offshore should be under Palestinian control, the Israeli navy maintains a constant patrol of the area. Israel’s official naval blockade, which is deemed illegal under international law, extends 20 miles out, yet military vessels frequently intercept boats long before they even reach territorial waters.
Israel Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that he has “imposed sanctions” to the fundraising operations of the GSF, a move “intended to deter donors from contributing to a terror organization,” he said, claiming that the movement is “organized by the Hamas terror organization, in cooperation with additional international organizations and under the guise of a humanitarian aid flotilla.”
Similar allegations of Hamas affiliation were leveled by Israel last September during the first Sumud mission but were largely debunked by independent observers.
