Demonstrators wave a giant Palestinian flag outside Greece’s Foreign Ministry in Athens, April 30, 2026, during a rally to protest the interception of Gaza aid ships by Israeli forces near Greek waters
THE activist-led mission attempting to sail to Gaza with humanitarian aid set sail for Turkey today, eight days after the Israeli military kidnapped some of its members in a much-criticised raid in international waters off the coast of Greece.
The Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), a collection of about 57 mostly small sailing ships, had to stop and take stock on the Greek island of Crete after the Israeli raid on April 30.
During the raid 180 members were taken to an Israeli ship, where, the flotilla activists said, many of them were subjected to beatings and torture before they were handed over to the Greek authorities.
Two men, Saif Abukeshek — a Spanish and Palestinian citizen — and Thiago Avila from Brazil were taken to Israel, where they have been held in detention on trumped-up terrorism charges.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
PSC Cymru co-chairwoman Bethan Sayed [… and what?]
PALESTINIAN campaigners in Wales were celebrating this weekend after 115 Senedd candidates pledged for Palestine — including backing boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel.
Candidates signing the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) Cymru pledge include 46 Green candidates, 37 from Plaid Cymru, eight from the Liberal Democrats, six from Labour and five independents.
PSC Cymru co-chairwoman Bethan Sayed said: “Reaching over 100 pledges is a milestone and is a clear message that Palestine is on the ballot in this Senedd election.
“Wales has always aspired to be a nation that stands on the right side of history, a globally responsible nation that holds human rights and international law at its heart.
“Support for Palestinian rights stretches across every community and every constituency in Wales. Polls show public backing for this issue.
“Voters will be watching closely to see who has the conviction to stand with them.”
The pledge commits elected candidates to uphold the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, stand up to Israel for its crimes of genocide and apartheid — and ensure the Welsh government is not complicit in these crimes.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Nigel Farage objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Demonstrators carrying banners and Palestinian flags gather to protest against Israel for violating the ceasefire carrying out attacks on Gaza, restricting the entry of humanitarian aid at Odenplan Square, in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, on April 25, 2026. [Atila Altuntaş – Anadolu Agency]
Activists gathered in the Swedish capital on Saturday to protest Israel’s ongoing military offensives in the Gaza Strip, Iran and Lebanon, Anadolu Agency reports.
Responding to calls from several non-governmental organizations, demonstrators assembled at Odenplan Square, carrying banners reading ‘Stop the killing of civilians,’ ‘End the food blockade in Gaza,’ and ‘Stop attacks on Lebanon and Iran’.
Participants demanded an immediate end to genocide in Gaza and urged the Swedish government to halt arms sales to Israel.
Ann Christin Kristiansson, a nun from the Church of Sweden, told Anadolu that the current violence constitutes a crime against humanity that transcends politics and religion.
She emphasized that the global community must unite against this oppression, stating that the dignity shown by those resisting in Palestine has set an example for the world.
The Israeli army launched a brutal two-year offensive on Gaza in October 2023, killing more than 72,000 people, injuring over 172,000, and causing massive destruction across the besieged territory.
The US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, prompting retaliation from Tehran against Israel and US allies in the Gulf, as well as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
In response to Hezbollah’s retaliation to the Iran war, Israel has waged an offensive in Lebanon since March 2, killing more than 2,600 people, and displacing over 1.6 million.
A 10-day ceasefire that began on April 17 was later extended until May 17, but Israel continues to violate it daily through airstrikes and the demolition of homes.
It also maintains a so-called “buffer zone” in southern Lebanon, saying it is meant to prevent attacks from Hezbollah. An earlier truce in Lebanon was reached in November 2024.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone …Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
A screen grab captured from CCTV video show crew of the Spring 2026 mission of the Global Sumud Flotilla, which set sail to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, Palestine, as the flotilla is blockaded by Israeli warships and drones at Mediterranean Sea on April 30, 2026. [Global Sumud Flotilla – Anadolu Agency]
At least 31 activists were injured during Israel’s interception of the Gaza-bound Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters, according to statements from the group, Anadolu Agency reports.
The Global Sumud Flotilla committee said those injured included activists from multiple countries, among them four each from New Zealand and Australia; three each from Italy and the US; two each from Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, the UK, Colombia and Germany; and one each from Hungary, Ukraine, France, Poland and Portugal.
One of the injured holds dual Turkish-German citizenship, while efforts are ongoing to determine the identities of three other passengers, it added.
In a separate statement, it said activists detained during the interception were subjected to ill-treatment aboard an Israeli naval vessel for nearly 40 hours.
The group said that detainees were deliberately denied sufficient water and food and forced to sleep on wet floors.
It also said participants who resisted the detention of Saif Abukeshek, a Spanish national of Palestinian origin, and Brazilian citizen Thiago Avila were met with force by Israeli soldiers.
One activist described the incident, saying, “As you can see, my nose is probably broken. My ribs hurt; maybe they are broken, too. I’m not sure. My neck as well. They kicked us, punched us, and dragged us on the ground, and we even heard shots being fired at people,” according to the statement.
The Global Sumud humanitarian aid flotilla was attacked Thursday near the Greek island of Crete, 600 nautical miles from its destination, the blockade-ravaged enclave of Gaza.
The flotilla’s first ships, carrying humanitarian aid, left Barcelona on April 12, while the main fleet set sail from the Italian island of Sicily on April 26, aiming to break Israel’s years-long blockade of Gaza.
Israel has imposed a crippling blockade on the Gaza Strip since 2007, leaving the territory’s 2.4 million people on the verge of starvation.
Israel launched a brutal two-year offensive on Gaza in October 2023, killing more than 72,000 people, injuring over 172,000, and causing massive destruction across the besieged territory.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone …Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Article by republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Vessels taking part in the Global Sumud Flotilla 2026 Spring Mission to Gaza depart from the marina in Augusta, on the island of Sicily, Italy, on April 26, 2026. (Photo by Baris Seckin/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“How on Earth,” asked the UN’s top Palestine expert, “is possible that Israel is allowed to assault and seize vessels in international waters just off Greece/Europe?”
Palestine defenders on Thursday condemned Israeli forces’ raid of the latest Global Sumud Flotilla—which was sailing off the Greek coast while attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza—and the arrest of more than 200 of its participants, with some prominent critics calling the seizure an act of piracy.
Greenpeace International—whose MY Arctic Sunrise is the flotilla’s most prominent ship—said that the maritime convoy’s 58 vessels were “boarded and harassed by Israeli forces in international waters 45 nautical miles west of the Greek island Kythira and 600 nautical miles from Gaza.”
Flotilla organizers said on X: “Our boats were approached by military speedboats, self-identified as ‘Israel’, pointing lasers and semi-automatic weapons ordering participants to the front of the boats and to get on their hands and knees. The boat communications are being jammed and an SOS was issued.”
The Israel regime’s attack on yet another humanitarian flotilla is a grave breach of international humanitarian law, a violation of the law of the sea, an extension of its genocide in Palestine to international and Greek waters, and a product of the impunity granted to it by… https://t.co/PTsS9zyDbh
The organizers said 211 flotilla participants were seized by Israeli forces. Flotilla activist Yasmine Scola said members were “kidnapped.”
Global Sumud France spokesperson Helene Coron said that 10 French nationals, including communist Paris City Council Member Raphaelle Primet, were seized.
“We don’t have the information for the other nationalities, but the boats were mixed in terms of nationality, so there were crew members from all 48 delegations,” Coron added.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said that “approximately 175 activists from more than 20 boats… are now making their way peacefully to Israel.”
Responding to Israel’s interception, former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakissaid on social media that his country’s government “is either complicit or incapable of defending our seas from Israel.”
“So much for freedom of navigation and international law,” he added.
ALARM! How on earth is possible that Israel is allowed to assault and seize vessels in international waters just off Greece/Europe? Besides what you can think of Apartheid Israel and its genocidal leaders, this should send shock waves across Europe.
— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) April 30, 2026
Independent British Member of Parliament Jeremy Corbynsaid of the flotilla members: “They were not intercepted. They were abducted in international waters. This is piracy—and is a flagrant violation of international law.”
Another British lawmaker, Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy, wrote on X that “last night, Israel’s navy committed an act of armed piracy in international waters, threatening unarmed civilians aboard.”
“Our government must condemn this attack, extend diplomatic protection to British participants, and work to ensure safe passage,” she added.
The migrant search and rescue group SOS Mediterranee France said on X that “attacking or threatening” Global Sumud Flotilla vessels “in international waters constitutes a violation of maritime law.”
“Furthermore, the Geneva Conventions are clear: Any person engaged in a humanitarian mission must be protected. Solidarity is not a crime, Preventing aid, however, is,” the group added.
Israel has intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters, and unarmed civilians were held at gunpoint.
This is not contested. This is a breach of international law.
Australians are on those vessels. The government cannot look away.
In the United States, Council on American-Islamic Relations executive director Nihad Awad said in a statement that “Congress must demand that the Israeli apartheid government immediately release the American citizens and other humanitarian activists it kidnapped in international waters in a blatant violation of international law.”
“Our nation would not tolerate, much less fund, the kidnapping of American citizens in international waters off the coast of Greece by any other state,” Awad added. “It is long past time for the out-of-control Netanyahu regime to face consequences of its crimes, including American citizens.”
The United States supports Israel with tens of billions of dollars in armed aid, and diplomatic cover including repeated vetoes of United Nations Security Council cease-fire resolutions for Gaza.
Last year, dozens of boats carrying hundreds of activists from over 40 nations took part in the last Global Sumud Flotilla—sumud means “perseverance” in Arabic—as it attempted to break Israel’s naval blockade and deliver desperately needed humanitarian aid including food, medicines, and baby formula to starving Gazans amid a growing famine.
Israeli forces intercepted and seized the flotilla vessels in international waters in early October, arresting all aboard the boats and temporarily jailing them in Israel.
In 2010, Israeli forces raided one of the first convoys carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza by sea. The attackers killed nine volunteers aboard the MV Mavi Marmara, including Turkish-American teenager Furkan Doğan.
Members of past Gaza flotillas have reported abuse at the hands of their Israeli captors, although they have urged the world to focus not on them, but rather the people of Gaza, who have endured nearly 31 months of genocidal war and siege.
More than 250,000 Palestinians have been killed or wounded by Israeli forces since the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023, including thousands who are still missing and presumed dead and buried beneath rubble. Most victims are civilians. Around 2 million other Gazans have been forcibly displaced, starved, or sickened.
The Israeli government continues to blockade Gaza by land and sea, strictly limiting the entry of humanitarian aid into the besieged coastal strip.
“We renew our call on world leaders to take concrete and immediate action in the face of the genocide being inflicted by Israel on the people of Gaza,” Pujarini Sen, project lead aboard the Arctic Sunrise, said Thursday. “The international community’s ongoing failure to enforce international law leaves it culpable for Israel’s actions.”
Climate science denier Donald Trump confirms that he knows nothing about democracy and that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateering.
Demonstrators wave a giant Palestinian flag outside Greece’s Foreign Ministry in Athens, April 30, 2026, during a rally to protest the interception of Gaza aid ships by Israeli forces near Greek waters
