ISTANBUL
Greece submitted a written protest to the Israeli ambassador on Friday following Tel Aviv’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's "terrorist" remarks against Global Sumud Flotilla activists.
"Written protest was just submitted to the Ambassador of Israel to Greece regarding the unacceptable and inappropriate behavior of an Israeli Minister directed against Greek citizens participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla, including a member of the Hellenic Parliament. This demarche calls on the Israeli side to promptly complete the required procedures and to respect the rights of the citizens involved," the Greek Foreign Ministry announced in a statement.
The ministry reaffirmed that the Embassy in Tel Aviv visited the detention center where 27 Greek nationals are held to provide necessary assistance, noting that they are in good health and efforts are underway to ensure their swift and safe repatriation.
"Human dignity is inviolable and fundamental and constitutes a primary obligation of every state," the statement also noted.
Israeli naval forces attacked and seized vessels of the Global Sumud Flotilla on Thursday and detained more than 470 activists from over 50 countries. The flotilla had been attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza and challenge Israel’s blockade of the enclave.
Israel has maintained the blockade on Gaza, home to nearly 2.4 million people, for almost 18 years.
Since October 2023, Israeli bombardments have killed nearly 66,300 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children, and rendered it all but uninhabitable, with the blockade also pushing Gaza to famine, with medicine and medical supplies in short supply.