A tense drama is unfolding in the eastern Mediterranean as a multinational flotilla of activists, including Irish, Spanish, Swedish, and Italian citizens, presses forward in a high-profile attempt to breach Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid directly to the besieged enclave. The mission, organized by the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), has drawn international attention, diplomatic wrangling, and even drone attacks as it nears the final leg of its journey.
Setting sail from Spain on September 1, 2025, the core vessels of the GSF began their eastward trek across the Mediterranean, gradually joined by boats and activists from dozens of countries. According to the Associated Press, the flotilla now consists of 52 to 55 mostly small ships, each loaded with a symbolic but vital cargo of food and medical supplies. These are destined for Palestinians in Gaza, where, after nearly two years of war, the humanitarian situation has reached catastrophic levels.
The activists’ goal is not just to deliver aid, but to draw the world’s gaze to what they call the “illegal siege” of Gaza—an 18-year blockade enforced by Israel, which, according to Israeli officials, is intended to prevent arms from reaching Hamas. Critics, however, argue that the blockade amounts to collective punishment and a violation of the Geneva Conventions. As Fra Hughes, a Belfast man and participant on the flotilla, told BBC News NI, “People wouldn’t be risking their life and their liberty in order to bring solidarity and support to the people of Palestine” if other aid routes were open.
The journey has been fraught with danger. Organizers have documented at least three separate drone attacks on the flotilla: twice off Tunisia on September 8 and 9, and most recently on September 23 and 24, as the boats sailed south of the Greek island of Crete. According to both the Associated Press and BBC, drones or other aircraft dropped unidentified objects on at least 10 boats, causing damage but, remarkably, no injuries. “At least 13 explosions were heard on and around boats, which raised urgent concerns for the safety of participants,” the GSF said in a statement quoted by BBC. Greta Thunberg, the Swedish climate activist aboard one of the ships, posted online, “But we continue undeterred. And the closer we are to Gaza, the bigger grows the risk of escalation towards us.”
The attacks have triggered a flurry of diplomatic activity. Italy and Spain, both with citizens among the activists, have dispatched naval vessels to the area. Spain’s offshore patrol vessel Furor was prepared to sail from Cartagena, while Italy sent a navy ship and called for the aid to be offloaded in Cyprus instead. Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto suggested the Catholic Church could deliver the aid safely, a proposal supported by Italian President Sergio Mattarella, who implored the flotilla to accept the offer of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem to “carry out the safe delivery of the supplies that this effort of solidarity has collected for the children, women and men in Gaza.” Cyprus, for its part, expressed readiness to assist if requested, and Israel indicated it would accept aid delivered through Cyprus.
But the activists, including Hughes and Thunberg, have rejected these alternatives, insisting on their right to deliver the aid directly to Gaza by sea. “Look at how many trucks have been refused entry into Gaza since March 2025,” Hughes said in his BBC interview. “If they simply allowed the trucks in that are at the border, we wouldn’t need a maritime lifeline.”
The Israeli government, meanwhile, has taken a hard line. On September 25, 2025, Israeli Foreign Ministry official Eden Bar Tal declared, “Israel will not allow any vessel to enter the active combat zone.” The ministry also claimed the flotilla was “organized by Hamas” and called on the activists to dock at Ashkelon Marina, where the aid could be transferred to Gaza in a coordinated fashion. “The real purpose of this flotilla is provocation and serving Hamas, certainly not humanitarian effort,” Bar Tal said, according to the Associated Press. The Israeli military has not commented directly on the drone attacks but has maintained that any attempt to breach the blockade will be blocked.
Greek authorities have also become involved. As the flotilla sailed off Crete, it received a Greek military naval escort, according to Hughes. Activists in Athens staged protests outside the foreign ministry, urging Greece to condemn the drone attacks and provide further protection. “More immediate measures are needed to have real impact and show meaningful solidarity with the Palestinian people,” protest organizer Mariketi Stasinou told AP.
The European Union has voiced concern as well. Eva Hrncirova, a spokesperson for the European Commission, stated, “The freedom of navigation under international law must be upheld,” and warned against the use of force. The UN Human Rights Office has called for an investigation into the drone attacks, reflecting the growing international unease over the situation.
This is not the first attempt to break the blockade. In 2010, Israeli commandos raided the Mavi Marmara, a ship in a previous aid flotilla, resulting in the deaths of nine Turkish citizens and one Turkish-American. More recently, other convoys have been blocked by security forces or attacked by drones, as happened to a vessel off Malta in May 2025.
The backdrop to this maritime drama is the ongoing war that erupted on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 hostages. Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, aimed at pressuring Hamas to surrender and return the remaining hostages, has since killed more than 65,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry. Around half of those killed are said to be women and children. The world’s leading association of genocide scholars, the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS), declared in early September 2025 that Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the UN’s legal definition of genocide—a charge Israel has strongly denied as “Hamas lies.”
With the flotilla now just days from either reaching Gaza or being intercepted, the world is watching anxiously. Will the activists succeed in their mission, or will history repeat itself with another confrontation at sea? Whatever the outcome, the Global Sumud Flotilla has already succeeded in focusing international attention on the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the complex politics of aid, war, and solidarity in the region.