DaysofPal- Israeli naval forces have reportedly raided several vessels belonging to the Gaza-bound Global Sumud Flotilla near Cyprus, escalating tensions surrounding the international aid mission seeking to challenge Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip.
In a statement, the flotilla’s organisers said the mission was “surrounded and under active interception by Israeli naval warships in international waters,” approximately 250 nautical miles from Gaza’s coastline. The group described the operation as “another illegal, high-seas aggression” carried out against a civilian humanitarian convoy.
According to the latest update issued on Monday afternoon, Israeli occupation forces boarded 16 vessels using a large contingent of armed soldiers against unarmed civilian crews. Footage released by activists appeared to show Israeli naval units circling and seizing several boats off the coast of Cyprus.
The flotilla organisers accused Israel of attempting to divide the mission along national lines after Israeli media reports claimed the convoy consisted of separate “European” and “Turkish” boats, with plans to isolate vessels according to nationality.
Rejecting those reports, the Global Sumud Flotilla said none of its vessels sailed under a Turkish flag and accused Israeli authorities of fabricating claims in an effort to invoke comparisons with the 2010 raid on the Mavi Marmara aid ship.
“The Israeli military is fabricating an outright lie to isolate specific vessels and invoke past incidents,” the group said, stressing that the flotilla had “no affiliation” with the Mavi Marmara mission.
The organisers further accused Israel of violating international maritime law, freedom of navigation on the high seas, and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. In a post published on X, the flotilla said Israeli soldiers had begun “boarding the first of our boats in broad daylight”.
International Condemnation and Escalating Humanitarian Crisis
The latest confrontation came four days after 54 vessels departed from Marmaris, Turkey, in an attempt to break Israel’s blockade on Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave.
Israeli media had earlier reported that the military was preparing to intercept the convoy before it could approach Gaza’s territorial waters. According to Israel Hayom, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held security consultations on Sunday ahead of the flotilla’s expected arrival.
Meanwhile, Yedioth Ahronoth quoted an Israeli source as saying the vessels would be seized and activists transferred to a “floating prison”.
The raid has drawn international condemnation, with Turkey’s foreign ministry denouncing the Israeli intervention and calling for an immediate halt to the operation.
“Israel’s attacks and intimidation policies will in no way prevent the international community’s pursuit of justice and solidarity with the Palestinian people,” the ministry said in a statement.
The incident follows a similar Israeli naval raid in late April, when Gaza-bound vessels were intercepted off the Greek coast, hundreds of nautical miles from Gaza. Nearly 200 activists were detained during that operation, while several boats were reportedly left disabled after being boarded.
Activists involved in the earlier mission said Israeli forces approached their vessels using military speedboats, pointing lasers and semi-automatic weapons at those on board while ordering passengers to kneel. They also stated that communications systems were jammed shortly before the raid.
The flotilla’s latest mission comes as Gaza continues to endure a deepening humanitarian crisis following more than two years of Israeli genocidal campaign and blockade measures imposed on the enclave since October 2023.
According to Palestinian figures, at least 72,769 Palestinians have been killed during the war, with thousands more believed to remain trapped beneath the rubble. Aid restrictions and the continued blockade have pushed parts of Gaza into famine conditions, while much of the enclave’s infrastructure, including hospitals, schools, and homes, has been devastated.
Despite a ceasefire announced in October, Israeli airstrikes and military operations have continued across Gaza, with more than 800 Palestinians reportedly killed since the truce came into effect.
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