UN urges Israel to allow life-saving aid into Gaza 'through all means' after interception of Sumud flotilla

Israel must allow life-saving aid into Gaza “through all means,” the UN human rights office urged Friday, stressing that international law “does not allow interception of foreign civilian vessels” on the high seas as Israeli forces seized yet another flotilla travelling through international waters.

"This is not the first time Israel intercepts unarmed civilian vessels sailing toward Gaza, in international waters," spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told Anadolu in a statement.

"International law provides for the freedom of navigation on the high seas and does not allow for the interception of foreign civilian vessels in all but a very limited set of circumstances,” he said.

He called on Israel to ensure that any use of force, treatment, and detention conditions for those in custody “fully conform with international law” and respect due process guarantees, including the right to challenge the legality of detention.

The spokesperson also reiterated Israel’s obligations as an occupying power.

“As the occupying power, Israel must ensure food, medical supplies and other supplies essential to the survival of the civilian population to the fullest extent of the means available to it, and to agree and facilitate the entry of impartial humanitarian relief, delivered rapidly and without hindrance,” he said, referring to orders by the International Court of Justice.

He urged Israel to “urgently lift the blockade on Gaza and allow the entry of life-saving material through all means possible.”

This week Israeli naval forces intercepted and seized more than 20 boats from the Global Sumud Flotilla, a convoy of more than 50 ships, and also detained some activists on board. The attack took place near the Greek island of Crete, hundreds of nautical miles (more than 1,000 kilometers) from Israel.

The first ships of the flotilla, carrying supplies, set sail from Barcelona on April 12, while the main fleet departed from the Italian island of Sicily on April 26, aiming to break Israel's years-long blockade of Gaza.

Israel has imposed a crippling blockade on the Gaza Strip since 2007, leaving the territory’s 2.4 million people on the verge of starvation. It launched a brutal two-year offensive on Gaza in October 2023, killing more than 72,000 people, and destroying the territory.

Despite a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas last October, Gaza remains in a dire humanitarian situation.