Global Sumud Flotilla Vows to Keep Sailing ‘Until Gaza Is Free’

Contact has been lost with all but two of the over 40 vessels participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla’s humanitarian mission, organized by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, to break the siege on Gaza.

As of this writing, the flotilla’s live tracker showed that 19 vessels were presumed intercepted by Israeli marine forces in international waters, while an additional 21 were confirmed to be intercepted, and three were reported to still be sailing. One of the boats, the Mikono Al-Bireh, appeared to be in Palestinian waters a few miles from the coast of Gaza, while another, the Marinette, appeared farther away in international waters. Both have lost contact with flotilla organizers. 

The flotilla’s “mother ships,” which provide legal observation, appeared to have sailed north away from Gaza’s coast. 

The Israeli Foreign Ministry claimed that none of the vessels entered Gaza’s waters and that its marines intercepted 42 vessels. The interceptions started at 9 p.m. Wednesday local time, when Israeli military boats approached the most advanced vessels in the flotilla and soldiers boarded the flagship Alma. Activists on board the other ships continued to livestream for several hours, reporting that Israeli forces had targeted the vessels with water cannons.

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Israeli forces also attacked the flotilla’s vessels with so-called skunk water, while others were stopped by chain-like barriers in international waters, the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement on Thursday. The detained volunteers were expected to be taken to the port of Ashdod and interrogated before being deported or placed in detention, but lawyers from Adalah — The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, who represent the flotilla’s volunteers, have not been told if that had occurred, the statement added.

Unlike during previous flotilla missions to Gaza, the Israeli army did not issue any statements. Instead, the Israeli Foreign Ministry claimed in a statement that Israel intercepted the flotilla and that none of the vessels made it into the blockade zone. The ministry added that the detained volunteers were “safe and in good health,” while repeatedly accusing the flotilla of being linked to Hamas.

Later Thursday, the ministry claimed that Israeli authorities had informed Adalah lawyers of the whereabouts of the flotilla volunteers. Adalah said in a statement that its lawyers received phone calls from detained volunteers, who said Israeli authorities had begun conducting “hearings” for them without informing their legal representatives.

Shortly after the interceptions began late Wednesday night, the spokesperson of the Sumud flotilla, Khaldiya Abu Baker, told Al Jazeera that the volunteers had been instructed not to resist violently, but also not to cooperate with Israeli soldiers or sign statements admitting that they sailed to Gaza illegally with a pledge not to return. Abu Baker added that Israel’s interception of the volunteers either in international waters or in Gaza’s waters (which is a Palestinian maritime space) qualifies their detention as an abduction.

Global protests break out

Protests broke out across Europe and the Middle East following the Israeli interception of the Sumud flotilla, including in Berlin, Rome, Brussels, Tunis, Istanbul, Madrid and Barcelona. Protesters have demanded the release of the volunteers and the end of the Israeli genocide and illegal siege on Gaza. Trade unions and other grassroots groups called for strikes and further protests in Italy and Spain next weekend. The flotilla’s website indicates that over 3 million emails have been sent by supporters to their elected representatives.

On the diplomatic front, Colombia recalled its remaining diplomatic mission members from Israel in protest against the interception of the flotilla. Colombia had cut diplomatic ties with Israel over its genocide in Gaza last year, but continued to have a consular mission in Tel Aviv. Spain, for its part, summoned the head of the Israeli mission in Madrid to demand “clarifications” over the interception of the flotilla. The U.K. also expressed “concern” over the interception, while Greece and Australia stated that they were following the status of the detained volunteers.

Both Spain and Italy had dispatched naval ships to accompany the flotilla in previous weeks, including a Spanish frigate. As the interceptions loomed, the Italian government instructed the flotilla to deliver the humanitarian aid intended for Gaza to a Cyprus port and call off its mission. The Italian navy ship turned back from accompanying the flotilla after its other members refused to comply. The Spanish frigate also left the flotilla once it approached the Israeli-imposed blockade perimeter.

The Global Sumud Flotilla, comprising more than 40 vessels and approximately 500 volunteers, is the largest mission to attempt to break the siege of Gaza since the first flotilla set sail for Gaza in 2008. During the current Israeli-Hamas war, two missions of single vessels preceded the Sumud flotilla — the Madleen, which carried 12 volunteers, and the Handala, which carried 21 volunteers.

The Sumud flotilla comes at a critical moment as international pressure against Israel’s genocide mounts and the U.S. threatens to let Israel “finish the job” if Hamas doesn’t accept Trump’s plan to end the war. It also comes as Israeli forces have completely sealed off Gaza City, warning that all Palestinians who remain will be considered “terrorists or supporters of terror.” As of this writing, an estimated 500,000 people remain in the city.

Meanwhile, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition stated shortly after the interception that the Sumud flotilla would continue “to sail until Gaza is free.” The coalition has already announced its next mission: “Thousand Madleens to Gaza.”