Israel Navy Intercepts Gaza Aid Flotilla with Australians Onboard

The organisers of a flotilla of ships trying to break Israel's maritime blockade of Gaza say Israel's navy is intercepting the vessels off the coast of Cyprus.

There are more than 50 ships in the flotilla and 11 Australians are said to be among the crews.

Organisers say their names are Anny Mokotow, Dr Bianca Pullman-Webb, Neve O'Connor, Violet Coco, Gemma O'Toole, Sam Woripa Watson, Zack Schofield, Helen O'Sullivan, Juliet Lamont, Isla Lamont, and Surya McEwan.

One of the Australians on board, Juliet Lamont was a member of the group who tried to breach the blockade in October last year.

She said it had been a quiet night of sailing, before the Israeli navy approach on Monday morning local time.

“It’s all on now,” Ms Lamont said in a video distributed by flotilla supporters in Australia.

“You never know the minute when the Israelis decide that 'yeah, let's f*** over some ordinary people,' 500 of them, who have got a whole load of baby food in boats trying to break their illegal siege in international waters.

“If we get put in that f*****g hellhole in Ketziot again, make sure our governments advocate on our behalf and get us out of there and end this genocide and free Palestine.”

Israeli public broadcaster KAN is reporting lawyers for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked to cancel a scheduled appearance in court for his long-running corruption trial on Monday for security reasons, which the network said was to watch the flotilla interceptions from the Israeli Defense Force's (IDF’s) headquarters in Tel Aviv.

Last month the Israeli military intercepted another flotilla of ships in international waters off the Greek island of Crete and detained the crews and damaging some of the ships, which the flotilla organisers described as an act of piracy on the high seas.

Most were later dropped off in Greece, including three of the Australians who have since joined this latest flotilla.

But two of the most prominent crew members were taken to Israel on allegations of being involved in a terrorist organisation and illegal activity.

Brazilian Thiago Avila and Spaniard Saif Abu Keshek were later released from prison, and their lawyers accused Israel of abuse while in custody — claims Israeli authorities denied.

Israel 'will not allow breach of blockade'

In a post on social media earlier in the day, Israel's foreign ministry said the country would "not allow any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza" and described the actions of the flotilla as "a provocation for the sake of provocation".

The flotilla movement has insisted the measures are vital to highlight the humanitarian crisis facing the population in Gaza and Israel’s cruel policies against Palestinians.

Israel has repeatedly criticised efforts to break the blockade as being more about garnering global attention for the activists on board than delivering meaningful aid to the people of Gaza.

This is the fourth group in recent months to try to sail to Gaza.

In May last year, a group reported a drone attack against ships near Malta.

A few months later, the Israeli navy intercepted a group off the coast of Egypt — among them Swedish activist Greta Thunberg.

Those activists were forced to watch videos of Hamas’ horrific attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, when they arrived in Israel, and they were later taken to a prison near the Israel-Egypt border.

The Australians in that group reported being beaten and mistreated by Israeli authorities while behind bars.

The maritime blockade of Gaza has been in place for almost two decades, well before the current conflict in the strip began.

One United Nations inquiry found the measures were unlawful, while another found it was legal to protect Israel’s security.

Flotilla participant calls on Prime Minister

Ethan Floyd, a Global Sumud Flotilla participant who has returned to Australia after last month's interception, called on the Albanese government to condemn these acts.

"This is now the second time Israel has illegally abducted Australian citizens in international waters, and our government has said nothing," he said.

"The Albanese government must condemn the kidnapping of its citizens by a foreign country.

"And it must follow that condemnation with real sanctions, political and economic, on the rogue state of Israel."

The ABC has asked the Foreign Minister Penny Wong and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for comment about the developing situation.

The IDF is refusing to comment about the interception mission, directing all enquiries to the country’s foreign ministry.