Israeli forces intercepted the Gaza Aid Flotilla ship, the “Handala,” minutes before midnight local time on Saturday and took the 20 passengers on board captive, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition.
The humanitarians and journalists on the ship – including Amazon Labor Union founder Christian Smalls, French-Swedish politician and European Parliament member Emma Fourreau, and Jewish-American actor Jacob Berger – sought to deliver aid to Gaza, after two other recent efforts had been stopped by Israeli attacks.
“'Handala' has been intercepted and boarded illegally by Israeli forces whilst in international waters,” the Freedom Flotilla Coalition said, as images showed Israeli soldiers boarding the ship, and the passengers sitting with their hands up.