Italy’s president on Friday urged citizens aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza to abandon the trip after organizers rejected Rome’s proposal to allow the Catholic Church to distribute the aid instead.
“The value of human life, which seems to have lost all meaning in Gaza, where it is gravely trampled upon ..., requires us to avoid endangering the safety of any person,” Italian President Sergio Mattarella stated on Friday.
“I feel compelled to make a strong appeal to the men and women of the flotilla to accept the offer made by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem ... to safely deliver what solidarity has destined for the children, women and men of Gaza,” he added.
Israel said that it backed the idea of transferring the aid supplies to the Church through Cyprus, but the flotilla rejected it, slamming it as an attempt to prevent it from safely sailing in international waters.
While “the issue of aid is very important,” a flotilla spokesperson told Italian media, abandoning the trip to Gaza “means admitting that you let a government operate illegally without being able to do anything.”
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that the organizers’ rejection of the Vatican’s plan made it clear that the initiative “has nothing to do with aid,” adding, “This is all about provocation and serving Hamas.”
The flotilla of some 50 ships, which is being led by anti-Israel groups and was initially launched from Barcelona, departed Tunisia on Sept. 15 for the Gaza Strip after repeated delays caused by rough seas.
The group said on Sunday morning that some 430 nautical miles, or 495 statute miles, remained on its journey, and that 500-plus participants were expected to breach Israel’s blockade of the coastal enclave in four days.
The flotilla left the Greek island of Crete on Sunday despite its flagship vessel, Family–Gaza City, being decommissioned due to engine failure, it said. Those on board were evacuated and reassigned to other boats.
The vessels are being escorted by the Italian and Spanish navies, which deployed warships last week after the initiative allegedly came under attack by Israeli UAVs that dropped stun grenades off the Greek coast.
However, Greece’s Hellenic Coast Guard told AFP on Wednesday that it did not see any evidence of damage or other proof of the alleged strikes.
Rome’s foreign ministry sent a message to Italian members of the flotilla on Thursday, warning them against continuing after refusing the Cyprus plan, and offering help with repatriation if they opted to disembark.
The missive emphasized that the Italian Navy ship would only carry out rescue or humanitarian operations, and would not engage in defensive or offensive military maneuvers, adding, “Whoever [continues with the mission] takes on all risks and is personally responsible for them.”
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a French European parliamentarian of Palestinian origin, are among those participating in the latest attempt to break Gaza’s naval blockade.
The declared objective of the Global Sumud Flotilla—sumud meaning “steadfastness” in Arabic—is to “to break the illegal siege on Gaza by sea, open a humanitarian corridor and end the ongoing genocide” there.
Jerusalem maintains that its naval blockade on the enclave, imposed on Jan. 3, 2009, is compatible with international law. It aims to prevent arms, terrorists and money from entering or exiting Gaza by sea.
In June, Israel blocked another flotilla to the Gaza Strip. Thunberg, who also participated in that attempt, was returned to her native Sweden and, along with 11 other activists, banned from entering Israel for 100 years.
