Statement

Over the past days, the world has once again witnessed a series of violations of international law on the high seas of the Mediterranean. In the early hours of 18 May, Israeli military forces surrounded the two flotillas, approximately 250 nautical miles off the coast of Gaza in international waters — far beyond any jurisdiction that could conceivably justify such an operation — detaining over 345 activists from 39 vessels engaged in a peaceful humanitarian mission to help the Palestinians. This followed an earlier interception on 29–30 April, in which Israeli forces unlawfully intercepted 22 boats carrying humanitarian aid to the besieged Gaza Strip and detained 180 civilians in international waters, 500 nautical miles from Israel’s coast.

The International Union of Socialist Youth and Young European Socialists unequivocally condemn these actions.

What happened after the interceptions is equally, if not more, alarming. Detained activists were held in a makeshift prison with shipping containers and barbed wire, and many were subjected to aggressive physical force. Some flotilla members had to be rescued after one boat was left sinking. Multiple people described severe mistreatment and sexual assault that may amount to torture, inhumane and degrading treatment, with more reports and video’s of the inhumane treatment of individuals reaching us every day.

The UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression has stated clearly: “This attack against unarmed civilians on the high seas is yet another violation of international law by Israel.” The UN human rights office has confirmed that attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza is not a crime, and has called on Israel to end its use of arbitrary detention and broadly defined terrorism legislation that is inconsistent with international human rights standards.

What Israel has carried out is not a legitimate security operation — it is piracy, a violation of international law and violent suppression of civilian solidarity and must be named as such.

These flotillas were not carrying weapons, they were carrying vital medical aid, respiratory equipment, and nutritional supplies destined for Gaza’s starving hospitals. Their passengers were doctors, lawyers, journalists, trade unionists, and human rights defenders — people acting in tradition of international solidarity. Israel has no legal authority over international waters, and the interception of these vessels constitutes a flagrant violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

We are also deeply troubled by the role of European governments in this crisis. Despite the flotilla being within the Greek coastguard’s search and rescue zone, Greek authorities failed to respond to repeated requests for assistance, and let Israeli forces intervene. The apparent ease with which Israel carried out these actions and the lack of condemnation raises serious alarm about the possible complicity by negligence of European governments. This silence is not neutrality, it is complicity.

IUSY and YES call on:

• All governments to publicly and unequivocally condemn the illegal interceptions and the documented abuse of detained activists, and to demand accountability for these crimes;

• European Union member states to take immediate diplomatic action against Israel’s violations of international maritime and humanitarian law by suspending the EU-Israel treaty and ensuring that no EU territory or resources are used to facilitate these operations;

• The international community to end the impunity Israel continues to enjoy, and to uphold the obligations they have under international humanitarian law to ensure the delivery of aid to Gaza and to ban the fundamentalist Ben Gvir from entering any state;

• Youth and progressive organisations worldwide to stand in solidarity with the flotilla activists and with the Palestinian people, and to keep the pressure on their governments to act;

• The immediate release of all hostages, a public apology from the Government of Israel and political consequences for the Netanyahu government for openly boasting about their crimes and atrocities with seeming immunity;

The blockade of Gaza is illegal. The interception of civilian humanitarian vessels in international waters is illegal. The abuse of detained activists is a crime. History will judge harshly those who looked away.

We stand with the flotilla. We stand with Gaza. The struggle for justice does not stop at the water’s edge.

Solidarity knows no borders.

International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY) & Young European Socialists (YES)