Germany urges Israel to avoid targeting Sumud Flotilla aid convoy to Gaza

BERLIN

Germany on Monday called on Israel to avoid targeting the Global Sumud Flotilla, which is sailing toward Gaza and includes Swedish activist Greta Thunberg among its passengers.

“Our goal is to avoid any confrontation at this point, and therefore we call on both sides to adhere to the applicable law,” deputy Foreign Ministry spokesman Josef Hinterseher told journalists in Berlin.

“There is a risk of violent intervention by the Israeli side to stop this flotilla,” he warned.

Hinterseher said that his country “emphasized to the Israeli side the need to comply with international legal standards” when it comes to dealing with the aid flotilla.

The international aid flotilla is less than 399 nautical miles away from the Gaza Strip, and is expected to reach the enclave on Sept. 30, organizers said on Sunday.

“Time moves and flotilla moves with it — every minute takes Global Sumud Flotilla nearer to Gaza and the justice it deserves,” the coalition said in a statement on the US social media company X.

The aid flotilla, made up of about 50 ships, set sail earlier this month to break Israel’s blockade on Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid, particularly medical supplies, to the war-ravaged enclave.

According to a video shared by a Turkish activist onboard, a Greek Navy vessel has returned after accompanying the flotilla in international waters, as Italian and Spanish navies continue to provide protection for the activists on board.

“The only thing between us and Gaza right now is the sea,” Ross Ykema, an activist from the Netherlands, said in a video statement.

Since March 2, Israel has fully closed Gaza’s crossings, blocking food and aid convoys and deepening famine conditions in the enclave. Only limited supplies are sporadically allowed in, and many are looted by armed groups that Gaza authorities accuse Israel of protecting.