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Israel The military stopped the nine-boat flotilla on Wednesday Mediterranean Israel is trying to break the naval blockade Gaza And scores of activists were detained on board, flotilla organizers and the Israeli Foreign Ministry said.
The ministry said 145 workers, who were in good health, were being brought ashore to Israel for processing and were expected to be deported soon.
The blockage came after about 450 activists, including European parliamentarians and climate activists Greta ThunbergLast week more than 40 boats were intercepted trying to reach Gaza with a symbolic amount of humanitarian aid.
That interception of the global Sumud flotilla drew widespread condemnation and led to large protests in several major cities and a one-day strike in Italy.
Organizers of this latest, the nine-vessel group—made up of the Freedom Flotilla coalition and Gaza’s Hajar Madeleine—decried the detentions on Wednesday as “arbitrary and unlawful.” Board activists included doctors, politicians and three Turkish MPs. The flotilla was carrying some food and medical aid destined for Gaza hospitals.
“Another futile attempt to breach the legal naval blockade and enter a combat zone came to nothing,” the State Department wrote on Twitter.
Organizers said the boats were stopped about 120 nautical miles off the coast of Gaza. In footage of the blockade released by organizers, the flotilla boats were approached by fast-moving vessels and then boarded by Israeli soldiers. There were no injuries.
Some deported activists from last week’s flotilla described abuse at the hands of Israeli guards, claims Israel denies.
The Gaza flotillas came amid criticism of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, where its offensive in the war hamas It has ravaged wide swaths of the region and killed thousands of people.
Israel and Hamas are currently in the third day of indirect talks in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh, along with high-level leaders from international delegations including the United States, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey.
The war was triggered by a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Some 1,200 people were killed by terrorists that day, while 251 others were abducted. Forty-eight hostages are still held in Gaza—about 20 are believed to survive.
Israel’s ensuing campaign has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government and whose figures are seen by experts as the most reliable estimates, has said women and children made up about half the dead.
Israel has maintained varying degrees of blockade on the Gaza Strip since Hamas seized power in the coastal zone in 2007, saying it is necessary to contain the militant group. Critics perceived the policy as collective punishment.
After the war began, Israel tightened the blockade but later eased under American pressure. In March, it sealed off the area from all food, medicine and other goods for 2½ months, contributing to Gaza’s slide into famine.
The flotillas say they want to break the Israeli blockade and establish a humanitarian corridor by sea, given the little aid that reaches Gaza.
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Brito reported from Barcelona, Spain. Associated Press writer Suzanne Fraser in Ankara, Turkey contributed to this report.