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Officials are “urgently seeking” details about the status of 11 Australian activists after their Gaza-bound aid flotilla was intercepted by Israeli forces.
The Global Sumud Flotilla is an activist-led initiative to breach Israel’s blockade on Gaza and get supplies into the Palestinian territory.
Organisers overnight said that their boats were “under attack”, posting on social media: “The Israeli occupation has again illegally and violently intercepted our international fleet of humanitarian vessels and abducted our volunteers.”
The group named the detained Australians as Anny Mokotow, Bianca Webb-Pullman, Neve O’Connor, Violet Coco, Gemma O’Toole, Sam Woripa Watson, Zack Schofield, Helen O’Sullivan, Juliet Lamont, Isla Lamont and Surya McEwan.
“We will continue to make clear our expectation that any detainees receive humane treatment in line with international norms,” a Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Spokesperson said.
“We understand people want to respond to the humanitarian situation in Gaza, but we continue to urge Australians not to join others seeking to break the Israeli naval blockade as they will be putting themselves and others at risk of injury, death, arrest or deportation.”
The spokesman urged Australians wanting to help aid efforts in Gaza “to do so through established channels” and noted Australia “has been part of the international call on Israel to comply with the binding orders of the International Court of Justice, including to enable the provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance at scale”.
The flotilla of more than 50 boats set off from the Turkish port city of Marmaris last week.
It was intercepted in international waters near Cyprus.
While human rights activists say the blockade Gaza is illegal, the Israeli government argues it is necessary to stop support getting through to Hamas – the Islamist militants who run the enclave and carried out the October 7 terror attacks on Israel in 2023.
Israel’s foreign ministry posted a video on social media it said showed activists from “the provocation flotilla … hugging after being transferred to Israeli vessels”.
“So far, no aid has been found on their boats,” the ministry said.
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