Last 10 Swiss citizens from Sumud aid flotilla set to go home via Jordan

GENEVA

Switzerland confirmed on Tuesday that the remaining 10 Swiss nationals detained in Israel from a humanitarian aid flotilla have been deported to Jordan, where the Swiss Embassy is assisting them ahead of their return home.

The group was received at the Jordanian border by embassy staff from Amman, said the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. The embassy is providing accommodation and arranging their onward travel to Switzerland, scheduled for Wednesday.

According to the department, the individuals are "in good health considering the circumstances." Their lawyers and the Swiss-based organization Waves of Freedom were immediately informed, and they in turn notified the families.

Israeli naval forces attacked and seized vessels from the Global Sumud Flotilla last week, detaining more than 470 activists from over 50 countries. The flotilla was trying to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza and challenge Israel’s 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 military operations have killed more than 67,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of them women and children. The relentless bombardment has rendered the enclave all but uninhabitable, with widespread starvation and the spread of disease.