Nearly 60 boats have crossed international waters from multiple ports to gather in Turkey as part of a fleet sailing trying to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The response of the Turkish government to their arrival was unclear, representatives of the global Sumud Flotilla said via media release on Sunday.
Organisers of the flotilla had planned for 79 boats to travel to Gaza but Israeli forces have already reportedly taken 22 boats as part of an interception near Crete.
Lawyer Greg Barns SC was quoted saying international law had been repeatedly violated by the capture and detention of supporters of Palestine in international waters far from Gaza, with authorities in Tunisia having jailed eight flotilla activists.
Activists said the actions came in response to ‘acute pressure from Israel to disrupt the mission’.
Ten crew members from Australia have made it to Turkey: Neve O’Connor; Zack Schofield; Surya McEwen; Juliet and Isla Lamont; Sam Woripa Watson; Anny Mokotow; Violet Coco; Helen O’Sullivan; and Gemma O’Toole.
Aussie trio released from Israeli detention
O’Connor, Schofield and McEwen rejoined the fleet after time in Israeli detention.
Supporters said the trio had been part of a smaller fleet intercepted by the Israeli Navy last week as they tried to sail from Italy to Greece.
The return of two other crew members to have been in Israeli detention, Thiago Avila and Saif Abukeshek, was yet to happen.
Israeli forces had agreed to their release, supporters said.
But the group held apprehension about ‘the grim long term impacts’ of detention ‘at the hands of Israeli captors’.
Children suffering, amputations without pain relief
Mr Schofield said he was willing to ‘face a beating’ if it meant a chance of getting aid through to people in need.
Ms O’Connor said children were suffering food and medical shortages in circumstances of unconscionable deprivation.
‘They have been forced to relocate so often that their tattered tents are now literally in the sea,’ she said.
Sunday’s update also referred to Dr Mohammed Mustafa, who last week shared eye-witness accounts of suffering in Gaza to a what supporters said was a large audience in Sydney.
Dr Mustafa described operating without anaesthetics while surrounded by amputated limbs.
The experience prompted him to consider ‘every rule of humanity’ broken by Israel.
Mr O’Connor said he believed most Australians didn’t support ‘the casual brutality and cruelty of the Israeli government’.
‘I was told that courage and mateship were core Australian values,’ he was quoted saying, ‘but it seems more and more like our government is terrified of offending a regime that just celebrated a new law to execute prisoners based on their race’.
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