Israel arrests four Swiss on Gaza aid flotilla

No time? blue News summarizes for you

• Israel has stopped a Gaza flotilla off Cyprus and arrested activists.
• Four Swiss nationals are said to be among those arrested.
• The Israeli government speaks of an illegal attempt to break the sea blockade.

Summary created with

According to the organizers, the Israeli navy has stopped another Gaza flotilla off Cyprus. According to the activists, four Swiss nationals were among those arrested, including Lausanne artist Anne Rochat.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed the operation and spoke of a "malicious plan". The Israeli Foreign Ministry had previously stated that Israel would not allow any violation of the naval blockade of the Gaza Strip. For its part, the "Global Sumud" flotilla spoke on Platform X of an "attack" by Israel on its boats.

The flotilla set off from Turkey in mid-May with around 50 ships. The Israeli authorities reject the activists' accusations that there is a lack of aid in the Gaza Strip and claim that Gaza is "flooded" with it. This is the third attempt in a year to break the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.

According to the Israeli news portal "ynet", the navy took control of the aid flotilla. The activists on board were arrested and transferred to a navy ship on which there was a "floating prison".

From there, they are to be taken to the Israeli port city of Ashdod. In the past, international activists have always been deported back to their home countries after a while.

Israel had already stopped another flotilla in international waters off Greece at the end of April. At the time, human rights organizations criticized the arrests as illegal and accused Israel of mistreatment. The Israeli authorities rejected the accusations.