Israel Arrests Nine Indonesian Citizens who Joined the Global Sumud Flotilla, Indonesia Demands Immediate Release
JAKARTA - The Indonesian government urges Israel to immediately release Indonesian citizens (WNI) who were arrested while joining the Global Sumud Flotillah humanitarian fleet which was sailing to break the sea blockade of the Gaza Strip, Palestine.
"Based on the latest information (07.13 WIB), 9 (nine) Indonesian citizens who are members of the Global Peace Convoy Indonesia (GPCI) which are part of the GSF 2.0 mission, have all been reported to have been arrested by Israel," said the spokesperson for the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Yvonne Mewengkang, Wednesday (20/5).
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs together with the Indonesian Representative continues to make intensive approaches with local authorities and all parties concerned to ensure the protection of the 9 Indonesian citizens," he explained.
"All diplomatic channels and consular measures will continue to be maximized to ensure full protection for Indonesian citizens and that they can return safely," said Yvonne.
Israel's military intercepted a flotilla of aid bound for the Gaza Strip on Monday after sailing from Turkey last week, with organizers saying one of the ships was stopped off the coast of Cyprus.
"Military ships are currently intercepting our fleet and IDF forces are currently boarding our first ship in broad daylight," Global Sumud Flotilla wrote on X, Al Arabiya reported from AFP.
The latest Global Sumud fleet is the third initiative in a year aimed at breaking Israel's blockade of Gaza, which has suffered severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in October 2023.
The fleet, consisting of 50 ships, sailed from Turkey on Thursday last week. Previously, a similar fleet was intercepted by Israel last month. Last year, a similar fleet was also intercepted by Israel.
GPCI itself in its official statement last week said that the nine Indonesian citizens who were part of this humanitarian mission were, Ust. Herman Budianto Sudarsono and Ronggo Wirasanu on the Zapyro ship, Andi Angga Prasadewa on the Josef ship, As'ad Aras Muhammad on the Kasr-1 ship, Hendro Prasetyo on the Kasr-1 ship, Bambang Noroyono on the BoraLize ship, Thoudy Badai Rifan Billah on the Ozgurluk ship, Andre Prasetyo Nugroho on the RIM ship, and Rahendro Herubowo on the Ozgurluk ship.
On the other hand, Israel on Monday vowed to block the ships in the fleet, the Israeli authorities denied claims of a lack of aid, saying that the Palestinian territory was "flooded" with supplies.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the Israeli Navy's move to intercept the ships of the Global North Sumut Flotilla on Monday.
Quoted from The Times of Israel, the Israeli Navy commando forces boarded the first ship in the humanitarian convoy off the coast of Cyprus.
"Indonesia urges the Israeli government to immediately release all the ships and crew of the International Humanitarian Mission that are being held," said Yvonne closing her statement.
Before this week's interception, Israeli forces intercepted a second flotilla in international waters off the coast of Greece on April 30 and sent most of the 175 activists to Europe, but arrested two of them, who were held for 10 days before being deported.
Last year, Israeli authorities blocked a similar attempt involving about 50 ships and about 500 activists, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, Nelson Mandela's grandson Mandla Mandela, and several European parliamentarians.