10 countries, including Pakistan, condemn Israel's interception of Gaza aid flotilla

“Pakistan and nine other countries on Tuesday issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla. The joint statement by the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Turkiye, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Libya, Maldives and Spain was shared by the Foreign Office on the social media platform X. It said that the ministers “condemn in the strongest terms the renewed Israeli assaults against the Global Sumud Flotilla, a peaceful civilian humanitarian initiative aimed at drawing international attention to the catastrophic humanitarian suffering of the Palestinian people”. “The ministers recall with grave concern the Israeli interventions against previous flotillas in international waters and condemn the continuation of hostile acts targeting civilian vessels and humanitarian activists,” it said. “Such assaults, including attacks against the vessels and the arbitrary detention of activists, constitute blatant violations of international law and international humanitarian law,” the statement added. “The ministers express serious concern regarding the safety and security of the civilian participants of the flotilla and call for the immediate release of all detained activists, as well as for full respect for their rights and dignity,” it said. They also stressed that repeated attacks against peaceful humanitarian initiatives reflected the “continued disregard for international law and freedom of navigation”. “They call on the international community to assume its legal and moral responsibilities, ensure the protection of civilians and humanitarian missions, and take concrete steps to end impunity and ensure accountability for these violations,” the statement concluded. Saad Edhi, son of prominent social worker Faisal Edhi and grandson of late philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi, was detained by Israeli forces on Monday along with other members of the Global Sumud Flotilla, after its boats were intercepted in the eastern Mediterranean. Indonesian newspaper Republika said nine Indonesians were part of the detained group, including two of its journalists. Fifteen Irish citizens were on the flotilla, including Margaret Connolly, sister of President Catherine Connolly, organisers said. Earlier on Monday, Israel’s foreign ministry had said on X that it “will not allow any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza”. Ships from the Global Sumud Flotilla had set sail for a third time on Thursday from southern Turkiye, after earlier attempts to deliver aid to Gaza were intercepted by Israel in international waters. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had condemned the latest attempt to deliver aid to Gaza by sea. He told the commander of the interception force, “I believe you are doing an extraordinary job … thwarting a malicious scheme designed to break the blockade we have imposed on Hamas terrorists in Gaza,” according to a statement from his office. “You are carrying this out with outstanding success … and certainly with far less fanfare than our enemies had anticipated,” Netanyahu said. Israel controls all entry points into Gaza, which has been under an Israeli blockade since 2007. During the Gaza conflict, the territory has suffered severe shortages of food, medicine and other essential supplies, with Israel at times halting aid deliveries entirely. A previous flotilla attempt was intercepted last month in international waters off Greece, with most activists expelled to Europe. Former senator Mushtaq Ahmed was among the activists detained by Israel. Additional input from Reuters and AFP

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