The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said it was “liaising with Israeli authorities and stand ready to provide consular assistance to any affected Australians”.

“Australia calls on all parties to respect international law, to ensure the safety and humane treatment of those involved,” a DFAT spokesperson said in a statement on Thursday evening.

“We understand that people want to help deliver aid to those suffering in Gaza – we also want to see critical aid delivered.

“For some time, we have warned against attempts to breach the naval blockade and strongly advised Australians not to do so because of the risks to their safety.

“We repeat our call on Israel to enable the sustained, unimpeded flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.”

Aussie filmmaker Juliet Lamont was on the vessel Wahoo and spoke to 9News as the Israeli navy approached their boat.

“We have a real sense of justice – that doesn’t mean that we’re not all terrified but yeah we’re going to keep pushing through,” she said.

“They shone really bright lights into our faces we all put the surrender hands up and they did it about three times and now they’re gone [but] other boats are still being intercepted – it feels like a cat and mouse game.”

They eventually got within 75 kilometres of Gaza before Wahoo’s communication system was cut.

The flotilla left Barcelona a month ago, aiming to deliver aid to the besieged Palestinian territory.

It consisted of about 50 boats from 44 nations with 500 activists on board, including Greta Thunberg, former mayor of Barcelona Ada Colau and European Parliament member Rima Hassan – all of whom have been detained.

Australian senator Fatima Payman echoed concerns about the safety of those detained.

“I am deeply concerned by reports that Australian citizens – Surya McEwen, Abubakir Rafiq, Hamish Paterson, Juliet Lamont, Bianca Webb-Pullman and Dan Coward – have been arrested by Israeli authorities after attempting to deliver aid to Gaza as part of the Sumud Flotilla,” Payman said in a statement.

“The blockade of Gaza has caused immense human suffering for years, and efforts such as the flotilla represent the determination of people around the world to stand in solidarity with Palestinians and to deliver desperately needed assistance.”

Flotilla organisers said one boat had managed to sail on but stopped near Gaza’s coast on Thursday morning (evening AEST) before contact with the vessel was lost.

They said 39 of their boats were intercepted – or assumed intercepted as communication with the activists was lost – in an Israeli operation that began the night before.

Supporters of the flotilla took to the streets in several major cities late on Wednesday (Thursday morning AEST), after news of the interception broke – including Rome, Naples, Istanbul, Athens and Buenos Aires – to decry Israeli actions and the ongoing Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip.

More protests were expected on Thursday around the world. Italy’s largest union called for a one-day general strike on Friday.

This flotilla was the largest yet to try and break the Israeli blockade of Gaza. The activists said they believed that with the sheer number of boats, it would be more difficult for Israeli authorities to intercept them all.

The organisers remained in contact with two vessels, though one was expecting that Israeli troops would board it imminently.

They also lost contact with one remaining boat whose last co-ordinates showed it to be only a few miles from Gaza’s shores, inside territorial waters.

Activists and European lawmakers detained

Israel’s Foreign Ministry posted photos and videos of the activists, saying in a statement on X that they were “safe and in good health” and would be transferred to Israel for deportation procedures to Europe.

Earlier, live broadcasts overnight from the activists, showed Israeli boats approaching their vessels, spraying them with water canons and flashing bright lights before soldiers boarded the flotilla.

Anticipating the interceptions, activists wearing life jackets sat in circles and raised their hands in the air. Some managed to stream the moment live from their mobile phones before tossing their devices into the sea.

The night=long operation that carried on as the sun rose appeared to be largely peaceful.

Governments around the world decry flotilla’s interception

While Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is yet to publicly comment on the interception of the flotilla, leaders from Turkey, Colombia, Pakistan, Malaysia and others have condemned the actions.

Italy and France, which had warned their activists not to continue the journey and avoid confrontation with Israel, said they were working with Israeli diplomatic authorities to ensure their citizens were transferred to land and deported home swiftly and peacefully.

Italy’s Premier Giorgia Meloni slammed Italian unions for their decision to call a general strike on Friday in solidarity with the flotilla, accusing them of seeking to cause wide disruptions across the country.

“I continue to believe that all this brings no benefit to the Palestinian people. On the other hand, I understand that it will bring a lot of problems to Italian citizens,” Meloni told reporters upon her arrival in Copenhagen for an informal European Union summit.

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry described the interceptions as an “act of terrorism” and a severe breach of international law in a statement late on Wednesday (Thursday morning AEST). The ministry said it was working to ensure the immediate release of Turkish citizens and other activists detained by Israeli forces.

Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro announced late on Wednesday (Thursday morning AEST) that his government will expel Israel’s diplomatic delegation in the South American country over the interception. Two Colombian citizens are taking part in the flotilla.

Petro has repeatedly described Israel’s siege of Gaza as genocide and broke diplomatic ties with Israel in May 2024 over the Israel-Hamas war.

The Colombian leader also announced he will terminate his country’s Free Trade Agreement with Israel over the flotilla’s interception, which he said was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “new international crime”.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday also condemned Israel’s interception, calling it a violation of international law and a threat to civilian lives.

The detention of activists was part of Israel’s “ongoing aggression,” it said, adding that Israel’s blockade of Gaza had caused “immense suffering” for more than 2 million Palestinians in the strip.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, a strong supporter of Palestinians, said Israel’s actions in blocking the flotilla from reaching Gaza show “utter contempt not only for the rights of the Palestinian people but also for the conscience of the world”.