Several boats belonging to the Global Sumud Flotilla were towed into the Israeli-occupied port of Ashdod on Thursday after being violently intercepted by the Israeli navy in international waters.

Witnesses reported that the boats, many of them flying large Palestinian flags, were surrounded by Israeli warships before being seized and forced toward the port.

The Israeli occupation’s military claimed it had intercepted at least 40 vessels from the humanitarian convoy, detaining all passengers on board. According to flotilla organizers, more than 443 activists from 47 countries are now being held in Israeli custody, their whereabouts unclear. The detainees include parliamentarians, human rights defenders, and medical volunteers who had joined the flotilla in an attempt to deliver urgently needed humanitarian supplies to Gaza.

The interception has triggered a wave of international condemnation. Rights groups denounced the act as a blatant violation of international maritime law and branded it “state piracy.” Demonstrations broke out in several capitals, with thousands rallying outside Israeli embassies demanding the immediate release of the flotilla activists and safe passage of the aid to Gaza.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sharply condemned the attack, calling it “an act of piracy in international waters” and vowing to pursue accountability for the Israeli government’s actions. Similar statements came from Malaysia, South Africa, and several Latin American states, all stressing that Israel has no legal right to block humanitarian aid bound for a besieged civilian population.

The Global Sumud Flotilla had set sail with more than 5,000 tons of food, medical supplies, and water filtration systems, desperately needed in Gaza where over 2.3 million Palestinians remain under siege. Organizers stressed that the mission was entirely peaceful, involving only civilian volunteers, but the Israeli military nevertheless launched a full-scale interception using naval commandos.

Eyewitness reports from passengers before communications were cut described masked Israeli soldiers boarding vessels, pointing weapons at unarmed activists, and confiscating personal belongings. “They treated us as criminals when all we carried was medicine and food,” one activist relayed in a last radio transmission before being taken.

The Israeli occupation authorities justified the seizure by claiming the flotilla “attempted to violate the naval blockade” on Gaza. However, international law experts have repeatedly argued that Israel’s blockade of Gaza constitutes collective punishment and is itself illegal under international humanitarian law.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry announced that flotilla participants are being taken to Israeli detention centers and would eventually be deported to Europe. Flotilla organizers, however, warned that many of those on board are refusing deportation, insisting that their mission was to reach Gaza and deliver aid directly to Palestinians in need.

The United Nations Human Rights Office said it was “gravely concerned” about the safety of the flotilla participants and demanded Israel release them without delay. Palestinian resistance factions praised the activists for their courage, stating that their mission had already “exposed Israel’s criminality to the world.”

Meanwhile, families of activists across Europe, Asia, and Africa are anxiously awaiting news from their loved ones, many of whom remain incommunicado. The Global Sumud Flotilla Coalition vowed that the movement to break the blockade would not end here. “Our ships may have been seized, but our determination is not,” it said in a statement. “The world now sees once again that Israel fears even food and medicine for Gaza.” (ILKHA)