European MPs slam Israel over flotilla raid, demand release of activists

More than 80 parliamentarians from across Europe have condemned Israel’s attack on the Global Sumud Flotilla and urged the immediate release of all volunteers still held in detention.

In a joint statement on Tuesday, members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the European Parliament said the flotilla “did not carry weapons, it carried hope” and described Israel’s actions as a “blatant breach of international law.”

The convoy of activists, journalists, lawmakers, and volunteers was stopped by the Israeli Navy on October 1 while attempting to deliver food and medical aid to Gaza.

More than 450 people were detained, with deportations ongoing, including 137 to Türkiye and 171 to Greece and Slovakia.

Many remain in a high-security prison, according to the statement.

The parliamentarians urged governments to press for the “immediate, unconditional release” of those still detained, ensure medical care, legal counsel and family contact, and allow independent access by the UN and ICRC.

They also called for an international investigation and reaffirmed the “inviolability of humanitarian missions.”

Amnesty International has also demanded the “immediate and unconditional” release of flotilla volunteers, while UN human rights experts urged an independent and impartial investigation into the interception.

“The Global Sumud Flotilla symbolised the moral courage of ordinary citizens acting where many governments have failed,” the statement read. “To detain, humiliate, or prosecute these individuals is to criminalise compassion.”

Refraining from acknowledging war crimes

Sena Nur Celik Kanat, an AK Party lawmaker from Istanbul, said that the declaration was signed by parliamentarians from several European countries.

“This is not only about calling for the release of the flotilla volunteers detained by Israel. When we look at the text, we see that it contains important references. One of them is the call to end the war crimes being committed in Gaza," she said.

"Unfortunately, today many European governments still refrain from even acknowledging that war crimes — let alone genocide — are being committed in Gaza. The text clearly states that more than 2 million civilians in Gaza are being subjected to acts indicating ethnic cleansing and genocide," she noted.

Recalling that some of the activists from the Global Sumud Flotilla had been released, she said: “We understand that the volunteers were subjected to all kinds of ill-treatment during their detention in Israel.”

She noted that the declaration also includes a call for an independent international investigation into these abuses. "The declaration calls for ensuring accountability of Israeli authorities in the face of violations of international law and international humanitarian law."

The names of the PACE and European Parliament members who signed the declaration are as follows:

Sena Nur Celik Kanat (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Gokce Gokcen (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Zeynep Yildiz (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Gala Veldhoen (Member of Parliament, Netherlands)
Fethi Acikel (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Namik Tan (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Utku CakirOzer (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Aysu Bankoglu (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Cemalettin Kani Torun (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Yunus Emre (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Meryem Goka (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Faik Oztrak (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Abdurrahman Babacan (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Jale Nur Sullu (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Seda Goren Boluk (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Murat Cahit Cingi (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Mustafa Canbey (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Pelin Yilik (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Sevan Sivacioglu (Member of Parliament, Turkiye)
Tugba Isik Ercan (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Derya Ayaydin (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Ceylan Akca Cupolo (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Busra Paker (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Cevahir Uzkurt (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Fatma Oncu (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Alice Bernard (Member of Parliament, Belgium)
Sevilay Celenk Ozen (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Aysegul Dogan (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Mehmet Akalin (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Ismail Ozdemir (Member of Parliament, Türkiye)
Saskia Kluit (Member of Parliament, Netherlands)
George Loucaides (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Cat Eccles (Member of Parliament, United Kingdom)
Bisera Kostadinovska Stojchevska (Member of Parliament, North Macedonia)
Sacha Faxe (Member of Parliament, Denmark)
Christophe LaCroix (Member of Parliament, Belgium)
Maria Luz Martinez (Member of Parliament, Spain)
Ettore Licheri (Member of Parliament, Italy)
Laura Castel (Member of Parliament, Spain)
Natasa Sukic (Member of Parliament, Slovenia)
Denis Begic (Member of Parliament, Sweden)
Tineke Strik (Member of the European Parliament)
Benedetta Scuderi (Member of the European Parliament)
Ana Miranda (Member of the European Parliament)
Leoluca Orlando (Member of the European Parliament)
Cristiana Guarda (Member of the European Parliament)
Saskia Bricmont (Member of the European Parliament)
Maria Ohisalo (Member of the European Parliament)
Irene Montero (Member of the European Parliament)
Isabel Serra (Member of the European Parliament)
Daniel Attard (Member of the European Parliament)
Thijs Reuten (Member of the European Parliament)
Catarina Martins (Member of the European Parliament)
Rima Hassan (Member of the European Parliament)
Marco Tarquino (Member of the European Parliament)
Cecilia Strada (Member of the European Parliament)
Mimmo Lucano (Member of the European Parliament)
Alessandra Moretti (Member of the European Parliament)
Brando Benifei (Member of the European Parliament)
Vlad Voiculescu (Member of the European Parliament)
Caterina Vieira (Member of the European Parliament)
Lucia Annunziata (Member of the European Parliament)
Hana Jalloul (Member of the European Parliament)
Marc Botenga (Member of the European Parliament)
Irena Jovena (Member of the European Parliament)
Matjaz Nemec (Member of the European Parliament)
Cesar Luena (Member of the European Parliament)
Barry Andrews (Member of the European Parliament)
Abir Al-Sahlani (Member of the European Parliament)
Lynn Boylan (Member of the European Parliament)
Evin Incir (Member of the European Parliament)
Alexandra Attalides (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Gavriel Yiannakis (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Damianou Aristos (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Kafkalias Andreas (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Kettiros Nicos (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Koukoumas George (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Kyprianou Andros (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Costa Costas (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Nikolaou Marina (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Pasiourtides Andreas (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Stefanou Stefanos (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Fakontis Valentinos (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Christofias Christos (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Christophides Christos (Member of Parliament, Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus)
Carla Moonen (Member of Parliament, Netherlands)