The Israeli military intercepted a flotilla of boats carrying humanitarian aid bound for Gaza in international waters near Greece, Israeli officials and the activist group behind the mission said on Thursday.
The Global Sumud Flotilla, the protest group in charge of the boats, repeatedly tried to deliver aid to Gaza and break through an Israeli naval blockade of the territory that has been in place for decades. Previous missions have included high-profile activists, like Greta Thunberg, the Swedish environmental campaigner, after Israel imposed severe restrictions on humanitarian aid into Gaza since the war there began in 2023.
On Thursday, the Israeli navy boarded multiple boats in the flotilla of more than 80 vessels, which was sailing from Barcelona to Gaza, the group said in a statement.
“After smashing engines and destroying navigation arrays, the military retreated intentionally leaving hundreds of civilians stranded on powerless, broken vessels directly in the path of a massive approaching storm,” the group said on social media.
The group also blamed the Israeli military for jamming communications on multiple vessels, “severing their ability to coordinate or signal for help.”
The Israeli foreign ministry described the flotilla as “a provocation without humanitarian aid” in a statement on social media. The ministry gave no details about the operation, but it released a video that showed people who they said were activists playing games on the deck of a ship, with the caption: “The activists enjoying themselves aboard Israeli vessels.”
Turkey lashed out at Israel over the military action, saying it had violated “humanitarian principles and international law.”
“This act of aggression further represents a breach of the principle of freedom of navigation on the high seas,” the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement.
Lynsey Chutel is a Times reporter based in London who covers breaking news in Africa, the Middle East and Europe.
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