Israel’s navy has launched an operation against an international aid flotilla bound for Gaza, according to media reports and organizers, who said military vessels approached the convoy and issued orders to those on board.
The group, calling itself the “Global Sumud Flotilla,” said in a post on X late on Wednesday that Israeli fast boats had moved toward the ships, pointing lasers and semi-automatic rifles at participants and instructing them to gather at the bow on their hands and knees. Communications had been jammed, and a distress signal sent, the group added.
Dozens of vessels carrying activists from multiple countries set sail from Sicily on Sunday toward the Gaza Strip in what organizers described as the largest flotilla yet attempting to reach the enclave.
The activists aim to challenge Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza, in place since 2007 and supported by Egypt, and to deliver humanitarian supplies to the territory. They also say they are seeking to push for the establishment of a permanent humanitarian corridor.
Israel has previously blocked similar attempts to breach the blockade. During an earlier effort last year, Israeli special forces boarded the largely privately owned sail and motorboats making up the flotilla and prevented them from reaching Gaza.
The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the latest reports.
Israeli news outlet Ynet, citing an Israeli official, said authorities had decided to intercept the flotilla in international waters well before it reached Israel’s coast due to its size, with the operation taking place west of the Greek island of Crete.