TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Israel stated on Monday that it would intercept the Freedom Flotilla voyage carrying international activists and humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip in an attempt to break Israel's blockade amid a worsening humanitarian crisis due to genocide.
The Israel's Army Radio, as reported by Anadolu, stated that their navy is preparing to intercept the flotilla ship Madleen, which departed from Sicily on its way to the Gaza Strip in an attempt to "break the naval blockade."
The ship is carrying 12 crew members and volunteers from various countries, including European parliament member of French-Palestinian descent Rima Hassan, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, and Irish actor Liam Cunningham.
In a brief response, the Israeli military stated that it is "enforcing the security maritime closure on Gaza and is preparing for a variety of scenarios," without further explanation.
On Monday, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) stated in a release that it has launched the Madleen, "a civilian ship now sailing toward Gaza carrying humanitarian aid and international human rights defenders in direct defiance of Israel’s illegal and genocidal blockade."
The statement emphasized that the voyage is "a peaceful act of civil resistance. All volunteers and crew aboard Madleen are trained in nonviolence."
The FFC's ship is carrying various much-needed supplies for Gaza residents, including baby formula, flour, rice, diapers, women's sanitary products, water desalination equipment, medical supplies, crutches, and children's prosthetics.
Before the ship departed, Thunberg described the journey as a "symbolic civilian mission" aimed at breaking the siege.
“If there is even a shred of humanity left, we must fight for Palestine. I am here because it’s a duty,” she said.
The ship is expected to reach the Gaza coastline in about a week, although it faces a high risk of being intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters.
The voyage follows similar efforts made by the FFC in early May, when the Conscience coalition ship was attacked by Israeli drones in international waters.
According to fleet sources, the attack caused a fire and punctures in the ship's hull.
On May 31, 2010, the Israeli military attacked six civilian ships from the "Gaza Freedom Flotilla" in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea, killing 10 activists and injuring 29 others.
Ten Israeli soldiers were injured, one severely. The exact sequence of events is still debated, in part due to IDF's confiscation of passengers' photo evidence.
The flotilla, organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the Turkish Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (IHH), carried humanitarian aid and building materials with the aim of breaking Israel's naval blockade in the Gaza Strip.
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