Israel seizes last remaining flotilla vessel

Israeli forces have intercepted the last remaining boat in the Gaza-bound Global Sumud Flotilla, detaining the six crew members on board.

On Friday morning, livestream video showed Israeli soldiers boarding the polish-flagged Marinette, which organisers had previously reported was "steaming" towards Gaza, while all the other boats in the once 44-strong fleet had been seized and redirected to Israel's Ashdod port.

Israeli naval forces illegally intercepted boats carrying aid to Gaza in an attempt to break the siege, detaining around 500 activists from 44 countries.

The Marinette's Australian captain, Cameron, informed the organisers late on Thursday that the boat had been lagging behind the main fleet due to engine issues, but was on course to reach Gaza.

“We have a bunch of very tough Turks onboard… we’ve got a lady from Oman and myself, and we’re just going to continue in the direction,” he said.

"Marinette is online and in great spirits," a source with the Global Sumud Flotilla told MEE on Thursday. "They were behind the fleet and trying to catch up, which likely spared them."

Israel's foreign ministry had previously warned that the Marinette's  "attempt to enter an active combat zone and breach the blockade will also be prevented".

A live geo-tracker showed the boat was intercepted some 43 nautical miles (about 80km) from Gaza’s territorial waters.

'Free Palestine'

Flotilla organisers confirmed to MEE that the Israeli authorities have detained all 455 participants, including high-profile climate activist Greta Thunberg and member of the European Parliament Rima Hassan.

The legal and human rights organisation Adalah reported that participants are being held in a detention space inside Ktzi’ot Prison in southern Israel, near Gaza.

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According to Adalah, all those processed so far have received visits from their lawyers, and consular visits began this morning. Everyone is reported to be relatively well. 

The International Committee to Break the Siege of Gaza said in a statement that several detainees began an open-ended hunger strike upon their detention.

A video circulating on social media showed Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir confronting detained flotilla activists as they awaited transfer to prison, repeatedly accusing them of being “terrorists.” The activists responded by chanting, “Free Palestine.”

In response, the International Committee said in a statement on X that it was “not surprising for the criminals of genocide to send out their minister, swaggering before activists from 50 countries around the world, surrounded by his guards", adding that the activists' chants "shattered the ears" of Ben Gvir.

The illegal interceptions of the flotilla have drawn global condemnation, with the UN's rights office saying that Israel's actions had widened its unlawful blockade of Gaza. 

On Wednesday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced the expulsion of all remaining Israeli diplomats and the termination of the free trade agreement with Israel.