Vacationers on a cruise ship carrying hundreds of Israelis were prevented from disembarking at the Greek island of Syros on Tuesday due to pro-Palestinian protests in the port, a passenger confirmed to JNS.
“We’re on the Mano Maritime cruise ship MS Crown Iris. It’s a Panama-flagged ship, but obviously, it’s an Israeli company,” stated Adam Mallerman, a JNS social-media manager, noting that it exclusively sails out of Israel.
“I think we got in around 12:30 p.m., and we’re only here until 6 p.m.,” said Mallerman. “The first people who got off the boat apparently had water thrown at them, although I haven’t had any confirmation of that.”
“We are 78 miles off the coast of Athens,” he continued. “Now, we have been told we can’t leave the ship, and we’ve only got like four hours left.”
Israel’s Channel 12 News cited the Mano Maritime shipping company as announcing that “as has been the case in several places in Europe, a protest by dozens of pro-Palestinians is taking place in Syros today.”
“We are in contact with the local authorities, and as a result, there is a slight delay in the disembarkation of passengers,” the company stated.
“There are no armed police on the ship—only Israeli security personnel, as is customary on our ship at all times,” Mano Maritime continued. “It is estimated that the demonstration will disperse within half an hour.”
However, the company subsequently announced that passengers would not be allowed to disembark at Syros and that the ship would instead sail on to Limassol, Cyprus.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar reportedly spoke with his Greek counterpart, Giorgos Gerapetritis, and requested that he intervene in Syros.
The Greek government reportedly condemned the incident.
Channel 12 News reported that Israeli Transportation Minister Miri Regev spoke with Greek Shipping Minister Vasilis Kikilias, who pledged that he will work to ensure that the incident is not repeated. He also reportedly said that forces will be reinforced every time an Israeli ship arrives at a Greek port.
Greek media reported that a large crowd of Syros residents attended the protest against “genocide” in the war against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip. A union of local port workers had reportedly attempted to have the ship’s arrival at the island canceled.
“We were really surprised; no one expected to see this. When we started to get closer, we saw the demonstration, and the Greek police are currently accompanying us,” one passenger told Channel 12.
“Hundreds of people were waiting for us. We are with children, and it is really unpleasant; they are afraid, scared and ask a lot of questions,” the vacationer continued. “Security personnel are walking around on board, and we are waiting for instructions.”
Last week, anti-Israel protesters and port workers at Greece’s Port of Piraeus blocked the unloading of the cargo ship Ever Golden, which was reportedly carrying steel designated for military use in Israel.
The protest was organized by the Container Handling Workers Union (ENEDEP), with the backing of anarchist groups and members of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), according to local media reports.
Similar protests and port blockades took place in Greece last month and in October 2024, also aimed at preventing the unloading of munitions reportedly bound for the Jewish state’s military.
