By The South Asia Times

ISLAMABAD - The foreign ministers of 11 countries spanning four continents issued a joint statement on Tuesday condemning what they described as “renewed Israeli assaults” against the Global Sumud Flotilla, a civilian humanitarian mission en route to the Gaza Strip.

The signatories—Pakistan, Türkiye, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Libya, the Maldives, and Spain—said the Israeli military intercepted the flotilla in international waters, attacked civilian vessels, and arbitrarily detained activists. The flotilla was organized to draw global attention to the “catastrophic humanitarian suffering of the Palestinian people,” according to the statement.

“We condemn in the strongest terms the Israeli assaults against the Global Sumud Flotilla, a peaceful civilian humanitarian initiative,” the ministers said, recalling with “grave concern” similar Israeli interventions against previous aid flotillas.

The statement accused Israel of “blatant violations of international law and international humanitarian law,” adding that the targeting of civilian vessels and activists represented a “continuation of hostile acts” and a “continued disregard for international law and freedom of navigation.”

The ministers expressed serious alarm over the safety of the civilian participants and called for the “immediate release of all detained activists, as well as for full respect for their rights and dignity.”

The joint appeal also urged the broader international community to “assume its legal and moral responsibilities,” ensure the protection of civilians and humanitarian missions, and “take concrete steps to end impunity and ensure accountability for these violations.”

As of Monday evening, Israeli authorities had not issued a detailed public response to the allegations. In past incidents, including the 2010 Mavi Marmara flotilla raid, Israel has maintained that its naval operations are necessary to enforce a maritime blockade on Gaza, which it says is aimed at preventing weapons smuggling. Humanitarian groups and several UN rapporteurs have repeatedly called the blockade a form of collective punishment.

The Global Sumud Flotilla—sumud being an Arabic term meaning “steadfastness”—had reportedly set sail with activists and journalists from multiple countries. The number of detainees and the exact location of the intercepted vessels remained unclear late Monday.

Spain, notably, is the first major European Union member state to join such a condemnation of Israel over a flotilla incident, signaling potential new diplomatic fault lines ahead of the UN Security Council consultations expected later this week.

The flotilla, consisting of more than 50 boats, set sail Thursday from the Turkish Mediterranean district of Marmaris in an attempt to break the Israeli blockade imposed on Gaza since 2007, according to Anadolu Agency.

Organizers said the mission included 426 participants, among them 96 Turkish activists and participants from 39 other countries, including Germany, the US, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Algeria, Indonesia, Morocco, France, South Africa, the UK, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Canada, Egypt, Pakistan, Tunisia, Oman, and New Zealand.

On April 29, Israel also attacked the Global Sumud aid flotilla off the coast of the Greek island of Crete.