Israeli military ships raid Gaza flotilla

BarcelonaIsraeli military vessels attacked the Global Sumud Flotilla at 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, carrying nearly 500 activists and humanitarian aid intended to break the blockade of Gaza and denounce the genocide. The ships lost communications, and the 44 solidarity boats that have been crossing the Mediterranean for a month are currently being boarded by Israeli soldiers. about 80 miles off the coast of Gaza, in international waters. Activists on board explain that the Israeli military approached very quickly, with their lights off, and contacted them by radio, warning them that they had imposed a naval blockade and that their ships would be seized. They also warned them that they were "responsible for whatever may happen to them." The Flotilla team issued a statement warning that they did not know the status of the participants and denouncing the assault as an "unlawful attack against unarmed humanitarian personnel" and calling on governments and international institutions to demand "their immediate release."

The social media accounts of all the flotilla participants, who had to throw their cell phones into the sea to avoid confrontations with soldiers, shared pre-recorded videos in which they reported being "kidnapped" by the Israeli army. The former mayor of Barcelona Ada Colau and the CUP member of Parliament Pilar Castillejo They have also spread their messages. In previous flotilla interceptions, activists and journalists were taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod and detained, offering them the option of requesting voluntary deportation that could take hours or days, with a ban on re-entering Israel. In this case, Israeli Interior Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said they would be treated as "terrorists." Never before had a flotilla gathered so many boats or generated so much international attention, nor had Israel ever been so challenged around the world.

As he watched the Israeli vessels approach, IAC trade unionist Eduard Lucas, on board the ship Adara, explained the situation in a voice message to the ARA: "We see 10 ships on the horizon approaching us at high speed and we imagine that they will board us from all sides: this happens because the governments that recognize Palestine are not promoting the opening of the humanitarian corridor. of finding ourselves in front of one of the most lethal armies in the world. Ariadna Masmitjà, another Catalan activist traveling on the same boat, explains that "in case they want to board us, we will sit in a circle with our life jackets on, with our hands raised to show that we have nothing to hide, and if the violence at some point escalates, it will be on the part of the Israeli army: we continue sailing because we do not continue sailing because we do not." She also clarified that the frigate Fury, sent by the Spanish government, has not contacted nor has it been seen at any time.

Ezequiel Peressini, former Argentine deputy of the Socialist Left, who travels to Sirius, told ARA: "The Israeli army is preventing the arrival of humanitarian aid to Gaza, and this illegal action is carried out with the complicity of governments that continue to provide military, political, and diplomatic support. These governments have only made empty speeches, hypocritically crying over the children killed in Gaza, too."

Statement from the Israeli Foreign Ministry

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that it has "detained several ships from the Flotilla" and noted that the operation was carried out "safely" and that the "passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port." The statement concludes in a mocking tone, referring to the well-known Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who was traveling on one of the boats: "Greta and her friends are safe and sound."

The Israeli army had marked the waters 120 miles from Gaza as an "exclusion zone." This is an "imaginary line created by Israel," which alleges the existence of an armed conflict to designate this area as a "combat zone," where it claims the right to restrict access to ships "because they are considered a security risk," as the UN High Commissioner for the Territories recalled this morning.

Albanese stressed that this demarcation at sea "makes no sense," as Israel has no sovereignty over Gaza and therefore no legal right to its waters. "Any intervention in these waters will be illegal," he warned, adding that it would be halting a "humanitarian and entirely peaceful" mission. "The Flotilla ships are not threatening peace; it is the illegal occupation of Gaza, the genocide and apartheid [perpetuated by Israel] that threatens peace," Albanese emphasized. But international law has never stopped Israel, and flotillas that have tried to reach Gaza so far have been intercepted by the military starting 95 nautical miles from the coast.

For its part, the Spanish Foreign Ministry has said it is already in contact with its Israeli counterpart and the EU delegation in Tel Aviv to inquire about the Spanish citizens and offer them consular protection, for which they have created a specific monitoring unit, and that Ireland or Turkey are coordinating.

Since Wednesday, in addition, the Flotilla has been traveling without the support of the Italian military frigate that escorted it, which announced it would withdraw 150 miles from the coast, and without the frigate sent by the Spanish government, which as of Tuesday night, according to sources from the Moncloa, would withdraw 120 nautical miles away. However, the Spanish rescue ship has not been seen at any time from the solidarity boats. The Spanish government issued a statement on Monday night to "strongly recommend" to the Flotilla that it not enter "the exclusion zone" that the Israeli army has established as 120 miles from the coast "because doing so would put its safety at serious risk" and warned that theFurywould not cross that line.

In response to the assault, a protest has been called in Barcelona this Thursday at the end of the Paral·lel, in addition to rallies in dozens of town halls. A student strike has also been called under the slogan "Stop the genocide against the Palestinian people, break with Israel now." In Italy, the country's main union, the CGIL, has called a general strike this Friday. This afternoon in Naples, protesters halted traffic at the city's main train station, Reuters reports.

Bombing intensifies in Gaza

Shortly before the assault on the flotilla, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz declared that Palestinians who do not leave Gaza City, where the Israeli army has launched a ground offensive for a month, "will be considered terrorists." This threat amounts to collective punishment prohibited under international law. He also announced that the army has finally secured control of the Netzarim corridor, which separates northern and southern Gaza, and said this will contribute to "tightening the siege on the city."