Friday morning, Israeli forces intercepted and seized the last ship of the Global Sumula Flatilla, The Marinette. The organizers said that the Marinette was around 80 miles from Gaza on Thursday evening, and about 10 sea kilometers from the place where Israel began to intercept other boats in the flotilla.
The cameras diffusing the live flows of the boats showed Israeli soldiers armed in helmets and night vision glasses on board ships, while the passengers huddled in vests of life, hands raised after its soldiers intercepted almost the 40 boats of the Flotille carrying aid to Gaza.
More than 450 foreign activists, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, were detained. A video from the Israeli Foreign Affairs has shown Thunberg sitting on a bridge surrounded by soldiers.
Thousands of supporters of the flotilla have held mass demonstrations in several cities around the world. The demonstrators went down to the streets in European cities as well as to Karachi, Buenos Aires and Mexico to protest against the capture of Israel from activists. Italian unions also called for a general strike on Friday.
Read: Pakistan condemns the Israeli raid on Gaza Aid Flatilla
Thunberg, 22, especially known for his environmental demonstrations, had pre-recorded a video that was published on his behalf after the climb of his ship.
“If you watch this video, I was removed and taken against my will by Israeli forces,” she said. “Our humanitarian mission was non -violent and remains by international law.”
Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani said he expected that Flatilla members were expelled from Israel on Monday and Tuesday and sent to European capitals for charter flights.
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that he took all the people she had captured from the flotilla on the ground in Ashdod, and that all were “safe and healthy”.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan criticized the Israeli assault, saying that she was showing that the government of Israel did not intend to let the hopes of Peace grow.
“I condemn the thug directed against the Flotilla Global Sumud, who decided to draw attention to the barbarism of children who die from hunger to Gaza and to provide humanitarian aid to the oppressed Palestinians,” he said in a speech to civil servants of his AK party in the capital Ankara.
The Office of the Chief Prosecutor of Istanbul said that he had launched an investigation into the detention of 24 Turkish citizens on ships, reported the Anadolu news agency belonging to Turkey. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa urged Israel to immediately release the South Africans who were on the flotilla, including the grandson of former president Nelson Mandela, Nkosi Zwelilelile Mandela.
Activists were to be transferred to the immigration authority upon arrival in Ashdod, from where they will be transferred to Ketziot prison in southern Israel before being expelled, said Suhad Bishara, director of Adalah, organization of human rights and legal center in Israel.
Find out more: The PM demands the release of Pakistani citizens aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla
The flotilla, which saved at the end of August, was transporting medication and food to Gaza and included more than 40 civilian ships with parliamentarians, lawyers and activists in a very mediated demonstration of the opposition to the blocking of Israel of Gaza, which said amounts to violations of the genocide agreement. Israeli officials have repeatedly denounced the mission as a blow.
Israel defends himself against the accusations of genocide of the International Court of Justice and the broader world opponent, saying that his actions have been in self -defense. While the flotilla crossed the Mediterranean Sea, Turkey, Spain and Italy have sent boats or drones in case their nationals require help, even if this has triggered repeated warnings from Israel to go back.
The Israeli navy had previously warned the flotilla that it approached from an active combat zone and violated a legal blockade, and asked the organizers to change course. He had proposed to transfer any peacefully aid by safe channels in Gaza.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army deploys remote -controlled vehicles loaded with explosives to destroy large sections of Gaza City, following a last warning urging hundreds of thousands of residents to evacuate.
In a statement, Hamas, which governs Gaza, expressed its support for activists and called the interception by Israel of the flotilla a “criminal act”, calling for public demonstrations to condemn Israel.
The United States and Israel announced a new proposal to end the conflict this week that includes Hamas’ performance. US President Donald Trump, who said he would temporarily supervise Gaza’s governance as part of his plan, gave Hamas for a few days to respond and warned against continuous escalation if Hamas refused.
The boats were around 70 naval miles off Gaza when they were intercepted, inside an area that Israel took charge to prevent all boats from approaching. The organizers said that their communications, including the use of a live cameras of certain boats, had been blurred.
