Gaza-Bound Global Sumud Flotilla Hit by Drone Strikes and Explosions Amid Israeli Threats
Athens (QNN)- Activists on board of the Global Sumud Flotilla reported hearing explosions and seeing multiple drone attacks from their boats situated off Greece from late Tuesday to the early hours of Wednesday amid Israeli threats to stop the Gaza-bound aid ship.
“Multiple drones, unidentified objects dropped, communications jammed and explosions heard from a number of boats,” the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement.
“We are witnessing these psychological operations firsthand, right now, but we will not be intimidated.”
Brazilian organiser Tiago Avila updated on his Instagram at midnight on Wednesday that a total of 10 attacks targeted multiple boats with sound bombs and explosive flares. They were also sprayed with suspected chemicals.
US activist Greg Stoker said his boat off the coast of Crete was also a target.
“Our boat was assailed by a quadcopter that dropped a little popper on deck. A couple of other boats experienced that as well. Our VHF [very high frequency] radio was hijacked by adversarial comms, and they started playing Abba,” he said on Instagram.
Organisers have reported that vessels were attacked by stun grenades, ship radio communications jamming, and multiple drones hovering over aid vessels.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs alleged that sailing boats were “pursuing a violent course of action”, which “highlights the insincerity of the flotilla members and their mission to serve Hamas, rather than the people in Gaza”.
The ministry ordered that the flotilla hand the aid on board the boats over to Israel so it can be transferred to Gaza which the flotilla organisers rejected.
If the flotilla continues to reject Israel’s order, Israel will take the necessary measures to prevent its entry into the war-torn enclave.
Avila called this “manipulation from the Zionist regime”.
“We can never believe an occupying force who is committing genocide that they will deliver aid – it’s not in their interests,” he said on his Instagram.
The flotilla, numbering 51 boats, set sail from the western part of the Mediterranean Sea earlier this month with the aim of breaking Israel’s blockade of Gaza and delivering aid to the territory. It had already been targeted in two suspected drone attacks in Tunisia, where its boat had been anchored, before resuming its voyage towards Gaza.
Environmental activist Greta Thunberg is among the high-profile participants.
International activists, including aid workers and campaigners, say they organised the flotilla as a peaceful action to draw global attention to Gaza’s humanitarian crisis amid the ongoing Israeli blockade on aid.
Israel has frequently attacked other flotillas attempting to break the siege on Gaza.
Organisers say the Global Sumud Flotilla, named after the Arabic word for “resilience”, represents one of the most determined challenges yet to Israel’s blockade of Gaza’s coastline.
In early June, Israeli naval forces intercepted the aid vessel Madleen in international waters, seizing its aid cargo and detaining its crew of 12, while in May, another vessel, the Conscience, was hit by drones near Maltese waters, leaving it unable to continue.
