European aid flotilla sails to Gaza with four MEPs aboard

Published on 13/09/2025 – 15:21 GMT+2
•Updated
15:24

18 boats carrying aid set sail on Saturday from Sicily towards Gaza under the “Global Sumud Flotilla” banner, with four MEPs also on board. 

They are set to join boats from Greece and Tunisia, some of which left Barcelona at the end of August, before heading together to the Gaza Strip.

According to the flotilla’s spokesperson, 34 boats in total joined the mission with around 600 people on board carrying around 500 tons of humanitarian aid.

The goal is to deliver aid to Palestinians in the biggest attempt so far to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza. But this could prove very complicated, as Israel’s authorities are in full control of Gaza’s shores and waters off the strip.

A similar action, carried out by a single boat last June, ended with the ship being intercepted by Israeli authorities and its crew detained in Israel for “illegal entry” before being repatriated. 

Activists will be designated as terrorists, imprisoned, and denied special privileges such as television, radio, and choice of food, Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir told the press at the beginning of September, touting a plan aimed at halting the flotilla.

In the days before the departure, two of the Flotilla’s vessels were allegedly targets of drone attacks in unclear circumstances. Both attacks were claimed to take place in Tunisian waters.  

The MEPs aboard include Italians Annalisa Corrado (Socialists and democrats) and Benedetta Scuderi (Greens/EFA),  France’s Emma Fourreau (The Left), and Ireland’s Lynn Boylan (The Left), who is also chair of the Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with Palestine. She is on the legal monitoring boat that is accompanying the Flotilla to document any possible breaches of human rights or international law.

Benedetta Scuderi and Annalisa Corrado told Euronews that, though they are scared, this wouldn’t stop them.

“I think it’s normal to be afraid of facing the Israeli government, which sets no limits in its destructive actions, acts contrary to international law, and has already stated it wants to treat us as terrorists. […] But we will not be intimidated,” said Scuderi.

“Of course I am scared. However, this is a mission worth making oneself available for, even if the consequences may be heavy or difficult to manage. I cannot even imagine the fear Palestinian children feel under the bombs or when being amputated of  their limbs without anesthesia.”

Both MEPs hope to increase international pressure on Israel and urge the European Union to act more boldly. “The association agreements with Israel should be suspended, the State of Palestine should be recognized, and humanitarian aid should have full access [into the Gaza Strip],” said Corrado.

Scuderi asked the EU to “break any trade and military deal with Israel” and to sanction the Israeli government. She considered Ursula von der Leyen’s pledge to sanction extremist ministers and the country’s violent settlers as “insufficient”, but hoped it might result in concrete actions. 

Spain’s Foreign Affairs Minister José Manuel Albares said that Spanish citizens on board the vessels will enjoy consular and diplomatic protection.

A similar statement was released by the Italian Foreign Affairs Minister, Antonio Tajani, during a parliamentary debate in Rome. “Our embassy in Tel Aviv has been activated and has raised awareness with the Israeli authorities about respecting the rights of all Italian citizens on board the Flotilla,” he said. Two Italian MPs are also aboard the flotilla.