Hanzala activist detained by Israel says they will continue sailing to Gaza to break the blockade

Lawyer Arraf, who was detained by force during the Israeli army's illegal raid on the Hanzala ship carrying aid to Gaza in international waters, recounted his experiences.

Arraf stated that the humanitarian aid they brought to the Gaza Strip was symbolic and that Palestinians, who are losing their lives one by one due to famine, need much more. He emphasized that the international community is turning a blind eye to "a rogue state on trial for genocide deciding how much aid will be delivered to the Palestinians."

Arraf emphasized that Israel was "committing genocide in broad daylight" in Gaza and stated that as long as governments remain silent about the crimes committed by Israel in Gaza, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition will continue to sail more ships for the people of Gaza.

Israel raids Hanzala, who was carrying baby food to Gaza, with dozens of armed soldiers

Arraf said that they saw two Israeli ships approaching them while sailing towards the Gaza Strip and that they contacted the Israeli navy after several unsuccessful attempts. "I told them that we were civilians, that we were only carrying humanitarian aid and that we were heading towards Gaza, and we asked them not to use force against us," he said.

Arraf stated that Israeli soldiers claimed that the blockade they imposed on Gaza was in accordance with international law, adding, "As an international lawyer, I told them that the blockade they imposed was not only illegal but also constituted a war crime because it was starving the civilian population in Gaza."

Arraf emphasized that he reminded them again not to attack the Hanzala ship carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, but received no response. He said that although he sent a distress call to other ships in the region stating that they were under attack, he received no response.

Arraf said the Israeli army surrounded the Hanzala with at least eight warships and that dozens of armed Israeli soldiers stormed the ship.

"It's ridiculous when you think about how much force they sent to stop a small boat carrying baby food for starving children," Arraf said, noting that after being detained, they were brought to Usdud Port, where they chanted "Free Palestine" at all the cameras that tried to film them.

Arraf said they conveyed to the Israelis that they would not accept food or water from an organization that deliberately starves children in Gaza, and that the Israelis used force against one of the Hanzala activists, but they were unable to see what happened next because they had taken the activist to another area.

Arraf said he reminded Israeli officials, who accused him of "entering Israel illegally," that they had detained him by force.

Hanzala activists unlawfully detained

Hedil Abu Salih, a lawyer for the Israeli rights organization Adalah, said that 19 of the 21 detained activists were brought to Usdud Port and two Israeli citizen activists were taken to the police station.

Abu Salih stated that they emphasized during the hearing that the forced detention and detention of the 21 activists was illegal, adding, "They were stopped or detained in international waters, not in Israeli waters."

Abu Salih, who stated that the activists detained from the Hanzala ship will be brought to the court at the Givon detention center in the city of Ramle, noted that the two activists were released after being brought to the police station.

Abu Salih stated that they predicted that the activists detained after the hearings would be deported.

Israel intervened in international waters

In a statement made on the Freedom Flotilla Coalition's WhatsApp channel, it was stated that the ship was intervened in international waters and that Israeli soldiers had taken down the security cameras.

In a YouTube livestream launched to track the Hanzala ship, Israeli soldiers were seen coming onto the deck and passengers on the ship raising their hands in the air.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry announced that the ship, which was raided in international waters, was towed to the country's coast with the detained activists.

Hanzala ship

The Hanzala ship departed from Syracusa Port, Italy, on July 13, but completed final preparations at Gallipoli Port from July 15 to July 20 to meet some technical needs.

It was reported that there were 21 activists from 10 different countries on the ship that set out on July 20 to bring aid to Gaza, where people were dying of starvation due to the Israeli blockade.