Gaza flotilla activists to be deported after mocking Israeli minister

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar confirmed on Thursday the release of Saad Edhi, along with other aid workers detained by Israeli security forces following the interception of the Sumud Global Flotilla.

On Monday, Israeli forces detained Saad along with other volunteers after intercepting the Sumud Global Flotilla, which was transporting humanitarian aid, including medicine and food, to victims in Gaza.

“I am pleased to announce that, as a result of our concerted efforts, Saad Edhi, who was aboard the Sumud Global Flotilla, has been released after being illegally detained by the Israeli occupation forces,” FM Dar said in a post on X.

He added that other detained humanitarian workers were also released and arrived safely in Istanbul, while thanking the Turkish authorities for facilitating their return.

“Alhamdulillah, I once again convey my sincere gratitude to the Türkiye government for ensuring his safe return to Istanbul,” he said.

Condemning the detention, the deputy prime minister described the treatment of humanitarian workers as unacceptable and reiterated Pakistan’s continued support for the Palestinian people.

“Pakistan has provided and will continue to provide unequivocal support to our Palestinian brothers and sisters, InshaAllah,” he said.

Edhi Foundation president Faisal Edhi previously said his son’s last contact was with his mother during the Sumud Global Flotilla mission, adding that he had informed her that it would be her last call.

Speaking on a programCenter of the stageFaisal said Saad had told his mother during the call that he would not be able to establish contact again thereafter.

“He told his mother that this is my last call, the Israeli forces have kidnapped us and after this I will not be able to contact you again,” he said.

He added that everyone on board the flotilla were volunteers and that aid, including food and medicine, had been raised through donations.

Faisal further said that medical teams in Gaza were reportedly being forced to perform surgeries without anesthesia.

He also alleged that women and youth were subjected to violence during the incident and said Israeli forces had long maintained what he described as a “fascist attitude.”

Referring to the situation in Gaza, he said the territory had been under siege for months, with more than 1.9 million people apparently trapped and limited information coming from the area.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also condemned the “illegal interception” of the Sumud Global Flotilla in international waters and called for the immediate release of all detained activists.

This is the second such incident in less than a month. Last month, former senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, who was part of an aid flotilla bound for Gaza, was also detained along with other activists after Israeli forces intercepted boats carrying aid workers.

Turkiye plans special flights to bring activists back

Turkiye was planning special flights from Israel to remove its citizens and some third-country activists who joined a global aid flotilla that was intercepted by Israeli forces while trying to break the blockade of Gaza, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said.

Fidan said in X that all Turkish institutions were working to ensure the safety and safe return of Turkish citizens.

Announcer ntv On the other hand, Turkish Airlines has sent three planes to Israel for repatriations.

Gaza flotilla activists who were detained by Israel and then pinned to the ground amid taunts from Israel’s far-right police minister have been released from prison and would be deported to Turkiye today, officials said.

The activists were arrested at a port in southern Israel after the Israeli navy intercepted their protest flotilla in international waters. Their treatment by police officers under Itamar Ben-Gvir sparked an international outcry and a rebuke from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Ben-Gvir and at least one other minister in Netanyahu’s government, transportation chief Miri Regev, posted campaign-style videos of themselves visiting the port and lashing out at protesters, antics that drew attention ahead of possible early elections in Israel.

Flotilla organizers said their goal was to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza by delivering humanitarian assistance, something aid agencies say is still in short supply despite a U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in place since October 2025 that includes guarantees of more aid.

The flotilla left southern Turkiye this week before being intercepted on Wednesday. Previous flotillas, including one carrying Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, were also intercepted by Israel, and their participants were subsequently deported.

In a statement, Israeli human rights group Adalah said the approximately 430 activists had been released from prison in southern Israel and would be deported via Ramon airport near Eilat on the Red Sea.

Read more: Israeli forces detain Saad Edhi and other volunteers after intercepting the Sumud Global Flotilla

Spain’s foreign minister said its diplomats in Israel had been informed that some 44 members of the Spanish flotilla would depart Israel at 3:00 p.m. local time (12:00 GMT).

Mocking of activists comes ahead of Israeli elections

Ben-Gvir’s video showed officers forcing an activist to the ground after she chanted “Free, free Palestine.”

The video also shows dozens of detained activists kneeling in rows with their hands tied behind their backs, in what appears to be an open-air Israeli port facility. In the background you can see soldiers armed with long weapons patrolling the area from a military ship.

The Israeli navy escorts ships of the Sumud Global Flotilla to the port of Ashdod, southern Israel. Photo: REUTERS

During Israel’s two-year intense military assault on Gaza since October 2023, Israeli troops frequently lined up Palestinian detainees on the ground, with their hands tied.

“Look at them now. See what they look like now, not heroes or anything,” Ben-Gvir says in the video as he walks alongside the activists while carrying a large Israeli flag.

Also read: UN Special Rapporteur urges Mediterranean states to protect Sumud Global Flotilla

Posting her own video at the port of Ashdod, transport chief Miri Regev, a member of Netanyahu’s political party, said: “This is what should be done with the supporters of terrorism who came to break the siege of Gaza.”

Netanyahu, who leads the most right-wing government in Israel’s history, said Ben-Gvir’s conduct was “not in line with Israel’s values ​​and norms.” The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, said he “betrayed the dignity of his nation.”

Ben-Gvir’s political base includes some of Israel’s most nationalist voters, a bloc that Netanyahu’s Likud party has tried to court in the past ahead of national elections, the next of which will be held on October 27.

Israel this week moved closer to a snap election after lawmakers gave an initial go-ahead to dissolve parliament, and opinion polls showed Netanyahu would lose the first national vote since the Hamas attacks in 2023.

International protest with the call of Israeli envoys

The detention and taunting of the activists led France, Canada, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands to summon senior Israeli diplomats to their countries.

Canada and Spain are among countries that have imposed sanctions on Ben-Gvir and far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, citing accusations that they incited violence against Palestinians.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said that whatever one thinks of the flotilla, “our compatriots participating in it must be treated with respect and released as soon as possible.”