Gaza aid flotilla says Israeli forces intercepted its boats

By Enas Alashray

(Reuters) -A group of vessels attempting to deliver aid to the war-ravaged Gaza Strip was intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters on Wednesday, the coalition behind the convoy said, the second such interception in the past week.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) is an international network of pro-Palestinian activist groups that organises civilian maritime missions aimed at breaking Israel's blockade of Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the enclave.

The flotilla's vessels and passengers were safe, had been transferred to an Israeli port and were expected to be deported promptly, Israel's foreign ministry said in a statement on X.

"Another futile attempt to breach the legal naval blockade and enter a combat zone ended in nothing," the ministry said.

The incident was the second such event in recent days, after Israel had intercepted about 40 vessels and detained more than 450 activists in an aid convoy, the Global Sumud Flotilla, that was also attempting to deliver supplies to Gaza.

The FFC said Israeli forces "hijacked the humanitarian fleet," adding that the "ships were illegally intercepted ... Participants - humanitarians, doctors and journalists from across the world - have been taken against their will and are being held in unknown conditions."

"The Israeli military has no legal jurisdiction over international waters," it said. "Our flotilla poses no harm."

The ships carried aid worth more than $110,000 in medicines, respiratory equipment and nutritional supplies intended for Gaza's starving hospitals, it added on its Instagram account.

Gaza authorities say about 67,000 people have been killed and the Palestinian enclave devastated by Israel's assault since the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

Israel says 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken to Gaza as hostages in the Hamas attack.

(Reporting by Enas Alashray; Editing by Jacqueline Wong, Clarence Fernandez and Lincoln Feast.)