Spain: Left wing parties condemn Israeli flotilla action

MADRID

Left-wing political parties in Spain have criticized Israel for disrupting the Third Freedom Flotilla to Gaza and capturing one of the vessels in international waters.

In a written statement, the Galician Nationalist Bloc described Israeli action as "piracy".

The bloc’s spokesman Francisco Jorquera and Rosana Peres, a parliament member, also criticized the Spanish government’s reaction over the incident, which saw Israeli forces taking by force the civilian vessel, Marianne, to the Israeli port of Ashdod.

The spokesman called on Spain’s Foreign Ministry to take a tough stance over the incident and face the Gaza issue head on. 

Podemos's spokesman Rfael Mayoral also urged the international community to raise its voice against Israel.

Mayoral emphasized that Israel should end its “discrimination” and “blockade” on Gaza underling that Israel violated human rights.

According to the official Freedom Flottila Twitter account (@GazaFFlotilla), Israel has imprisoned the Marianne crew. “Most of Marianne crew now in Givon prison, Israel,” it tweeted Tuesday.

“Activists of the Marianne, excluding [Arab Israeli politician] MK Ghattas & [former Tunisian president] Dr. Marzouki, who were already released, now at Givon prison in Israel,” another tweet from an affiliated Twitter account (@ShiptoGazaSE) said.

Israel has maintained a tight blockade of the Gaza Strip since 2007, when Palestinian group Hamas took over control of the territory.