The Israeli Navy has intensified efforts to block the Global Sumud Flotilla, a convoy of ships carrying humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has already deployed warships in the Mediterranean near the Gaza coast.
According to the flotilla’s online tracker, at least 21 vessels were intercepted before entering Gaza’s territorial waters. Reports suggest that another 19 ships have fallen under Israeli control in international waters.
So far, only one vessel, the Mikeno – originally headed for Al-Bireh near Ramallah – managed to enter Gaza’s waters and is still attempting to reach the enclave.
Tracker data showed that as of 3:20pm Bangladesh time (8:20am GMT), the ship was just 11.9 nautical miles from the Gaza coast. It is believed to be moving slowly in an effort to evade Israeli surveillance.
Earlier, Israeli naval forces seized several flotilla ships, including Alma, Adara, All In, Aurora, Captain Nikos, Deir Yassin, Florida, and Karma.
More than 200 passengers – including volunteers, human rights activists, journalists, and political leaders from different countries – were taken along with the vessels to Israel’s Ashdod port, Reuters reported. They are expected to arrive around noon local time, though not all ships will dock simultaneously.
A spokesperson for Global Sumud said there has been no contact with the seized ships. The closer Israeli vessels get, the more communication systems are disrupted due to jammers. Al Jazeera reported that, for security reasons, many passengers even threw their personal mobile phones into the sea.
