WASHINGTON

US Senator Ed Markey on Monday called on Israel to immediately release members of a humanitarian aid flotilla who were detained last week after Israeli forces seized their vessels bound for Gaza.

“Now that the members of the Global Sumud Flotilla have been taken into custody by Israel, Netanyahu should release them as soon as possible without harm,” Markey, a Democrat from the city of Boston, said on X.

“These are peaceful protesters who were delivering much needed humanitarian aid to Gaza.”

According to the flotilla’s organizers, 24 Americans — including several military veterans — were among the participants. It was not immediately clear how many remain in Israeli custody.

Israel has deported around 170 of the detained activists in recent days, mostly to Istanbul, with smaller groups sent to Italy and Spain, said the Israeli legal center Adalah.

Israeli naval forces intercepted the flotilla late Wednesday, detaining more than 470 activists from over 50 countries. The vessels were trying to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza and challenge Israel’s nearly 18-year blockade of the enclave.

Israel has maintained the blockade of Gaza, home to nearly 2.4 million people, for almost 18 years.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed more than 67,000 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children, and rendered it all but uninhabitable, with the blockade also pushing Gaza to famine.