The Israeli army has just intercepted the fleet with humanitarian help that wants to break the blockade on the Gaza strip. What organizers will do to do

The Israeli military intercepted the international fleet trying to deliver drugs and foods in the Gaza strip and climbed on board its ships, while it was approaching the war -devastated enclave, the organizers of the humanitarian aid mission announced on Wednesday, according to Reuters.

About 20 ships were seen approaching the fleet on Wednesday night, several people on board said, while the passengers put their rescue news and were preparing to take control by the Israeli forces.

“Several ships (…) have been illegally intercepted and addressed by Israeli occupation forces in international waters,” the organizers said in a statement. “We work diligently to inform all the participants and the crew,” they added.

According to the organizers, their communications were blocked before the interception began, a measure that interfered with the rooms that transmitted live on different ships and with the communications between ships.

Global Sumud Flotila, consisting of over 40 civil ships carrying about 500 parliamentarians, lawyers and activists, including the Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, tries to break the Israeli block on the Gaza strip, despite repeated warnings from Israel to return.

Flotila is about 70 nautical miles from the Gaza Strip devastated by the war, in an area that Israel supervises to stop any approaching ship.

A live video transmission from one of the ships in Flotilă surprised passengers dressed in rescue vests, sitting on the deck.

It is not currently clear how many ships have been intercepted or stopped. Some passengers have transmitted that their ships continue to advance.

The organizers remained unwavering, stating in the press release that the fleet “will continue without being intimidated”.

The Israeli army did not respond to Reuters's request to make details about the interception of ships.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry has previously announced that Marina has warned the fleet that it is approaching an active battle area and violating a legal block, asking them to change the course.

The ministry said that it reiterated the offer of Israel to transfer any kind of humanitarian help through safe channels to Gaza.

Attempting to break the blockade

The approach of this fleet represents the latest attempt at breaking the Israeli block on the Gaza strip, after a large part of the Palestinian enclave has been transformed into a deserted land of the war that lasts almost two years.

Flotila hoped to arrive in Gaza Thursday morning, if she hadn't been intercepted.

This was the second time, on Wednesday, when the fleet was approached. Prior to the east, the organizers of the mission announced that two Israeli “war ships” approached and surrounded two of the fleet boats. All navigation and communications devices have been put out of service as a result of what an organizer on board described as a “cyber attack”.

A video post on the Instagram page of the fleet showed the figure of what seemed to be a military ship with an artillery turret, near the civil boats.

Reuters mentions that he confirmed that the recording was filmed from the fleet, but could not confirm the identity of the other ship in the video or the moment he was filmed.

Last week, Flotila was attacked by drones, which threw paralyzing and irritating powder on the ships, causing damage, but without injuring.

Israel did not comment on the attack, but transmitted that he will use any means to prevent the ships from reaching Gaza, arguing that his naval block is legal, as he is fighting the Coastal Enclava militants.

Italy and Spain sent military ships to help rescue or humanitarian operations, but ceased to follow the fleet after it approached 150 nautical miles (278 km) of Gaza, for safety reasons. Turkish drones also supervised ships.

On Wednesday, Italy and Greece commonly asked Israel not to hurt the activists on board and asked the fleet to teach the Catholic Church aid to be delivered indirectly in Gaza-a request that Flotila has previously rejected.

Israeli officials have repeatedly denounced the mission as an advertising maneuver or challenge.

“This systematic refusal (to teach aid) shows that the goal is not humanitarian, but provocative. They do not seek to help, but seek an incident,” said Jonathan Peled, Israel's ambassador, in a post on the social network X.

Previous attempts to deliver humanitarian aid

At the press conference organized by organizers on Wednesday, Francesca Albanese, the UN main expert in the rights of Palestinians, said that any interception of the fleet “would still be a violation of international law, of maritime law”, because Israel has no legal jurisdiction over the waters of the strip.

Israel has imposed a naval block on the Gaza strip since Hamas took control of the coastal enclave in 2007, and the activists made several previous attempts to deliver high help.

In 2010, nine activists were killed after the Israeli soldiers approached a six vessels with 700 propalestinian activists from 50 countries.

In June this year, the Israeli naval forces detained Greta Thunberg and 11 crew members a small ship organized by a propalestinian group called Freedom Flotilla Coalition, while approaching Gaza.