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Alsharq Tribune-Otaify
Italy and Greece on Wednesday urged Israeli authorities to ensure the safety of the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) participants headed for Gaza and to allow consular protection measures.
The GSF, comprising about 52 small vessels and more than 500 volunteers from over 40 countries including Greece and Italy, aims to challenge Israel's naval blockade imposed since 2007 and deliver food and medical aid to Palestinians.
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said late Wednesday that Israeli authorities had boarded the flotilla's vessels before 9 p.m. local time and detained the crew members.
He confirmed that the Italian government had instructed its embassies in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to provide assistance to all Italian citizens taken to Ashdod Port and facing deportation. Defense Minister Guido Crosetto characterized the operation as a "blockade," emphasizing the hope for a calm and rational process without issues.
According to Italy's national television news channel Rai News 24, some flotilla participants reported that in the early hours of Oct. 1, an Israeli warship approached the fleet and surrounded the lead vessel, the Alma, but did not carry out a boarding operation.
Israel detained three Portuguese citizens after intercepting the GSF vessels, Portuguese authorities confirmed.
Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has pledged that the government will provide "full consular support" to the detained citizens through the Portuguese embassy in Tel Aviv.
The Portuguese foreign ministry said that consular services at Portugal's Tel Aviv embassy have been in contact with Israeli authorities for several days, requesting that Portuguese citizens be treated "with dignity and without violence" and in "respect of their individual human rights."
Earlier in the day, Italy and Greece issued a joint declaration saying that the two countries are closely monitoring developments related to the flotilla.
Greece and Italy reiterated the need to guarantee humanitarian access to Gaza and called for a ceasefire at the earliest possible date. The two countries urged all parties to refrain from actions that could be exploited by those opposed to peace.
The latest round of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has dragged on for nearly two years, claiming more than 65,000 lives in Gaza, nearly half of them women and children, and leaving 2 million people mired in a humanitarian catastrophe.
