Australian Authorities Assist Detained Activists from Gaza Flotilla in Israel

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The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has said it is providing consular assistance to five Australians detained in Israel after vessels from the Gaza aid flotilla were intercepted by the Israeli military on Thursday.

A DFAT spokesperson said the department is also seeking to confirm the detention of another Australian.

“Officials from the Australian Embassy in Tel Aviv are on the ground in Ketziot to support Australians in detention,” the spokesperson said, referring to the location of a prison in Israel’s southern Negev region.

“The Australian government has made clear to Israel our expectation that detainees will receive humane treatment in line with international norms.”

According to the organisers of the Global Sumud Flotilla, seven Australians — Surya McEwen, Abubakir Rafiq, Hamish Paterson, Juliet Lamont, Bianca Webb-Pullman, Dan Coward, and Cameron John Tribe — are among those in custody in Israel.

‘My son could be dying’

A spokesperson for the flotilla said on Thursday that DFAT was refusing to share information with families of the detained.

Jacinta McEwen, whose son Surya is among the group, said the lack of communication from Australian authorities was “unconscionable”.

“My son could be dying and they won’t even tell me if he’s okay,” she said in a statement.

“The Australian government has a duty to protect its citizens; they are failing us.”

The flotilla, which set sail in late August, was the latest of several attempts by activists to challenge the Israeli naval blockade of Gaza’s roughly 40-km coastline.

It consisted of more than 40 civilian boats and carried approximately 500 activists, legislators, and a symbolic amount of aid to Gaza.

Israeli officials have repeatedly denounced the mission as a stunt.

The Israeli foreign ministry had said the flotilla was previously warned that it was approaching an active combat zone and violating a “lawful naval blockade”, and asked organisers to change course.

Donald Rothwell — an international law professor from the Australian National University — wrote in a recent article in The Conversation that Israel’s claim of the blockade’s legality was “contentious”.

Israel ‘keen to end this procedure’

The ministry said on Friday that four Italians had been deported and the rest are in the process of being deported.

“Israel is keen to end this procedure as quickly as possible”, the ministry said in a social media post, adding all the flotilla participants were “safe and in good health”.

The boats were about 70 nautical miles off Gaza when they were intercepted, inside a zone that Israel is policing to stop any boats approaching.

A video from the Israeli foreign ministry also showed Greta Thunberg, Swedish campaigner and one of the most prominent of the activists, sitting on a deck surrounded by soldiers.

In the last 24 hours, CBS News has reported anonymous US intelligence sources as claiming that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had directly approved the drone attacks.

The Israeli military did not respond to requests for comment in early September and has not yet responded to the recent allegations.

Flotilla interception triggers protests

In reaction to the interception of the flotilla, protesters took to the streets of several countries calling for the release of the passengers.

Over two million Italians protested on Friday, as part of a day-long general strike called by unions in support of the residents of Gaza and the flotilla.

According to Italy’s largest union, 300,000 people marched through the streets of Rome alone, while the national average participation in the general strike stood at around 60 per cent.

In Florence, protesters approached the gates of the Italian national soccer team’s training centre to demand its upcoming World Cup qualifier against Israel not be played because of the war in Gaza.

Protesters hold flags and a banner reading "Palestina Libera" at a rally.

Italy’s right-wing government has criticised the strike, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting the strike was just an excuse to have a longer weekend break. Source: AAP / Salvatore Laporta / KONTROLAB / ipa-agency.net / Sipa USA

Demonstrations also took place in Spain, with protesters gathering outside the country’s foreign ministry.

There were also reports of protests in France, Portugal, Switzerland, Finland, Belgium, Türkiye, the United States, Singapore, Argentina and Mexico.

Italy, Spain and Türkiye deployed naval escorts to ensure the safe passage of the flotilla through the Mediterranean in September.

— With additional reporting by Reuters and the Australian Associated Press