Israel arrests 175 activists and seizes 20 ships from the "Steadfastness Flotilla"
The Israeli navy seized 20 ships in international waters on Thursday as part of the "Global Resilience Flotilla" to break the blockade on the Gaza Strip, and arrested about 175 activists.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said on the platform of the "X" company: About 175 activists from more than 20 ships of the flotilla are now heading to Israel, and according to the "Walla" website, the Israeli government decided to deter the participants in the flotilla, so it seized only 20 ships, and issued warnings to the rest.
He added that the commander of the Israeli navy , Maj. Gen. Eyal Harel, will assess the situation and present his recommendations in the coming hours, and that the military intelligence service "Aman" and the Foreign Ministry will participate in the operation.
The seizure of the ships took place in close proximity to the Greek islands, specifically about 45 nautical miles west of Crete, and appears to have been coordinated between the two sides.
The Israeli Navy storms ships in the "Steadfastness Flotilla"
The head of the Canadian delegation in the "Global Steadfastness Flotilla", activist Safaa Chebbi, revealed at dawn on Thursday, April 30, 2026, that the Israeli navy stormed a number of ships of the flotilla while they were sailing in the Mediterranean Sea towards the Gaza Strip, confirming that contact with two ships has been lost so far.
In private statements to Anadolu Agency, Chebbi, a Canadian of Tunisian origin, said that "Israeli drones flew over some of the ships of the flotilla, before they were intercepted by gunboats and prevented from continuing to sail towards Gaza," adding that members of the Israeli forces "boarded some ships and issued direct warnings to the activists, near Greek territorial waters."
Al-Chebbi explained that communication with the ships "Safsaf" and "Snap" has been lost, noting that the flotilla's crews "are determined to reach Gaza regardless of the actions and attacks of the Israeli army."
Large-scale attack in international waters
Late on Wednesday evening, the Israeli army began attacking ships of the International Resilience Flotilla in international waters, according to the flotilla, which confirmed at dawn on Thursday that 11 ships had lost contact at once. The flotilla said on the "X" platform that "Israeli military boats illegally surrounded the boats in international waters and threatened to hijack them and use violence against them."
According to the Israeli Army Radio, the navy began to control the ships of the flotilla "away from the Israeli coasts", confirming the seizure of 7 of the 58 ships, and the radio described the operation as the "furthest of its kind" in intercepting the blockade-breaking fleets.
The Hebrew website "Walla" reported that the navy "has already taken control of some ships and may be towed to the port of Ashdod," noting that Israeli forces have disabled radio communication devices and ordered activists to change course.
Earlier on Wednesday, the fleet announced that most of its boats had been electronically jammed, while the boats continued to sail in the Mediterranean Sea as part of the "Spring 2026 mission," and the fleet posted on Instagram that the Italian ship "Bianca" was "approaching," and that "most of the boats are being jammed."
In another post, the flotilla said Israeli speedboats "directed lasers and semi-automatic assault weapons" at the boats, ordering participants to "kneel down and put their hands on their heads," before announcing a distress call.
Civilian flotilla attacked for second time
The "Spring 2026 Mission" was launched on Sunday from the Italian island of Sicily, as part of an international civilian initiative aimed at breaking the blockade imposed on Gaza since 2007 and delivering humanitarian aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip, and the flotilla includes between 65 and 100 boats, with about 1,000 activists from different countries on board.
This is the second attempt by the Global Resilience Flotilla after the September 2025 experiment, which ended with an Israeli attack in October while the ships were in international waters, and hundreds of activists were arrested before being deported.
The flotilla's interception comes in light of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, where about 1.5 million Palestinians have lost their homes, while the war, which began in October 2023, has left more than 72,000 dead and 172,000 wounded, in addition to widespread destruction in the health infrastructure and tight restrictions on the entry of fuel and medical supplies.
What is the Global Resilience Fleet?
The Global Resilience Flotilla is one of the most prominent civilian maritime initiatives that have emerged in recent years, in an attempt to break the naval blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip since 2007. The initiative, led by activists from civil society organizations and solidarity figures from multiple countries, is an extension of a long line of international movements that began in 2008 and culminated in milestones such as the Freedom Flotilla in 2010.
The new edition of the fleet was launched in April 2026, under the name of "Spring Mission 2026", carrying activists, doctors, human rights defenders, and journalists of various nationalities, in addition to shipments of medicines, foodstuffs, and humanitarian aid to the residents of Gaza. The Initiative's ships moved from European ports, most notably Barcelona in Spain and Augusta on the Italian island of Sicily, before heading east across the Mediterranean Sea on a declared and transparent route.
Despite the purely civilian nature of the initiative, it carried a clear political message: to pressure the international community to open a humanitarian maritime corridor and break the isolation imposed on the Gaza Strip in light of the ongoing war and the deterioration of the humanitarian situation to unprecedented levels.
The flotilla has several names in its media coverage, including the "Global Resilience Flotilla", "Siege Breaking Flotilla", and "Spring 2026 Mission", but the message they have is the same: solidarity with Gaza, rejection of the continuation of the blockade, and calling for urgent international action to end the humanitarian catastrophe.