A flotilla carrying aid to Gaza said dozens of its vessels were still moving toward the Palestinian territory on Thursday, despite being intercepted by Israeli naval forces the previous night.
The Global Sumud Flotilla, made up of around 45 boats carrying activists and politicians, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg set sail from Spain last month. The group aims to break Israel’s blockade and deliver aid to Gaza, where the United Nations has warned that famine has already taken hold.
Israeli forces intercepted part of the flotilla on Wednesday, warning the vessels not to enter waters under its blockade. Thunberg’s ship was among those stopped. But flotilla organizers said most boats continued their journey overnight, nearing Gaza’s coast in the early hours of Thursday.
“Thirty boats still sailing strong on their way to Gaza, just 46 nautical miles away, despite the incessant aggressions from the Israeli occupation navy,” the group posted on X at 3:20 a.m. local time.
Flotilla spokesman Saif Abukeshek said Israeli forces intercepted 13 boats carrying about 200 people, many from Spain and Italy.
Speaking in a video, he said: “Our mission is going on. They are determined. They are motivated, and they are doing everything within their hands to be able to break the siege by this early morning.”
The group described the interceptions, which took place around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, as “illegal,” claiming they occurred in international waters. Organizers also reported losing communication with several vessels after the encounter.
Israel’s foreign ministry confirmed that several flotilla vessels had been stopped and redirected to an Israeli port, posting footage of Thunberg collecting her belongings. “Greta and her friends are safe and healthy,” it said.
The interception drew swift condemnation. Hamas called it “a crime of piracy and maritime terrorism,” while Turkey’s foreign minister described it as “an act of terrorism that constitutes the most serious violation of international law and endangers the lives of innocent civilians.”
Spain and Italy, which sent naval escorts, had urged the ships to stop before entering Israel’s exclusion zone off Gaza, saying their frigates would not go further. After a 10-day stop in Tunisia — where organizers said their vessels were targeted by two drone attacks — the flotilla resumed its journey on September 15.
The activists accused Spain and Italy of trying to “sabotage” their mission. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to treat the flotilla as a threat. Italy’s Giorgia Meloni warned that the mission could complicate US President Donald Trump’s proposed Gaza peace plan, which remains under negotiation.
Israel previously blocked similar attempts to break the blockade in June and July.