Freedom Flotilla III

Freedom Flotilla III challenged Israel's naval blockade of Gaza, which NGO Monitor described as having been established to prevent the smuggling of weapons and other materials used for terrorist activity.[1] The flotilla was organized by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a body comprising ten member organizations including the European Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza, Ship to Gaza Sweden, Ship to Gaza Norway, Ship to Gaza Greece, Canadian Boat to Gaza, IHH, Gaza's Ark, Freedom Flotilla Italia, Rumbo a Gaza, and the International Committee for Breaking the Siege on Gaza.[1] Additional participating or supporting organizations identified included the Palestine Solidarity Alliance–South Africa, Miles of Smiles, Life Line Gaza–Jordan, and the Platform of French NGOs for Palestine.[1]

Planning for the flotilla became public in late April 2015, when Zaher Birawi, a coordinator for the International Committee to Break the Siege of the Gaza Strip, announced that at least three seaworthy ships were expected to sail to Gaza that summer.[5] Organizers met in Greece on May 16–17 to discuss logistics, deliberately declining to announce the sailing time and departure location in order to prevent Israel from pressuring the relevant host countries.[5] By May, Birawi acknowledged that financial difficulties had reduced the planned flotilla to three small ships carrying a limited quantity of humanitarian aid, and he characterized the mission's objectives as mainly political and media-focused.[6]

The Marianne of Gothenburg, a Swedish trawler, left Sweden in May 2015 as the flotilla's lead vessel, stopping at ports including Helsingborg, Malmö, and Copenhagen before continuing southward.[2][7] The ship traveled through waters off Norway, Germany, France, Spain, and Portugal, passed through Messina in Italy, and then headed toward Crete, Greece, where it was to meet additional vessels.[8] Ship to Gaza spokesperson Dror Feiler — described as a former Israeli living in Sweden — told reporters that the Marianne's baggage compartment held medical supplies and medications, but described the activists' political message as their "most important cargo."[7]

Notable passengers joining the flotilla included former Tunisian president Moncef Marzouki, Joint List Knesset member Basel Ghattas, Feiler himself, and Spanish European Parliament member Ana Maria Miranda Paz.[8] Ghattas traveled to Greece to await the vessel and, according to his office, remained determined to sail despite threats that his parliamentary rights might be revoked.[9] He sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon on June 28 urging them to allow the ship to reach Gaza and to instruct security forces not to use force.[10]

Before departure, Israel's Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nachshon called the flotilla an "unnecessary provocation," arguing that humanitarian aid could be sent to Gaza through Israel, which he said regularly facilitated such deliveries.[2] Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Ron Prosor, called on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to condemn the flotilla, and the Foreign Ministry said Israel was preparing "diplomatically and militarily" to prevent it from reaching Gaza.[8]

The flotilla formally set sail on June 26, 2015, with the Marianne departing from Sicily.[1] Three additional vessels — identified as the Vittorio, Rachel, and Juliano 2 — departed from Crete to join the Marianne en route; the three smaller vessels flew Greek flags.[11][3] Together, the four vessels carried 47 passengers and crew in total: 18 aboard Marianne, 12 aboard Juliano 2, nine aboard Vittorio, and eight aboard Rachel.[3] Organizer Birawi noted that roughly 90 percent of the activists were European and Western, with Arab passengers representing Jordan, Algeria, and Morocco also among those aboard.[12]

Activists and journalists aboard the Marianne were instructed not to use verbal or physical violence if Israeli soldiers boarded, and Feiler said those aboard had signed a form pledging non-violence.[7][13] A June 28 report said that a vessel believed to belong to the Israeli Navy was accompanying the flotilla.[13] On the morning of June 29, organizers reported losing contact with the Marianne when it was approximately 100 nautical miles from Gaza, with at least three Israeli naval vessels nearby.[14]

In the early hours of June 29, Israel's Shayetet 13 naval commando unit took control of the Marianne at sea.[3] The IDF said the takeover followed a decision by Israel's political leadership after diplomatic approaches had been exhausted, and that the passengers had declined an invitation to sail to Ashdod.[3] The operation was described as brief and without injuries, and the Marianne was towed to Ashdod, where it docked that night.[3] Israeli television broadcast partial footage of the boarding, filmed by Channel 2 reporter Ohad Chemo; the footage showed MK Ghattas negotiating with commandos and a commando addressing Marzouki, but also showed Israeli forces using a taser on an activist — a detail that sat in tension with the military's description of the operation as occurring without incident.[15]

Contemporary reports differed on the exact sequence involving the accompanying vessels. Ynet reported that two vessels turned back and that a fourth had likely turned back earlier, whereas a Maariv commentary said two vessels turned back and a fourth never departed.[3][16] The ITIC report relayed a statement by Rami Abda, identified as a member of the European Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza, that the boats had planned to retreat to avoid damage and preserve their ability to join future flotillas.[12]

Following the Marianne's arrival in Ashdod, the 18 passengers were expected to undergo brief questioning before being processed for deportation.[3] Former president Marzouki, Spanish MEP Ana Miranda, and Dror Feiler were expelled from Israel the following day, June 30.[15] Israeli citizens aboard — including MK Ghattas — were to be handled separately by police.[3]

Prime Minister Netanyahu praised the Navy's "determined and effective action" and described the flotilla as a display of hypocrisy and lies that assisted Hamas.[14][3] Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon characterized the mission as non-humanitarian and as part of a broader campaign to delegitimize Israel.[12][3] Hamas and other Palestinian figures condemned the interception and called it a violation of international law.[12] Flotilla spokesperson Feiler had argued before the operation that boarding the Swedish-flagged vessel would itself violate international law and Sweden's sovereignty, though this was his legal claim rather than a judicial determination.[7]

On July 2, 2015, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition issued a statement declaring the mission successfully completed, on the grounds that it had again brought international attention to the Gaza blockade, which the coalition called "the most important issue of our era."[4] The statement indicated that Ship to Gaza and the coordinating body would assess the mission and plan future activity, with organizers stating their intention to sail to Gaza again.[4]

NGO Monitor reported that the Platform of French NGOs for Palestine, which it identified as a supporting organization of Freedom Flotilla III, comprised more than 40 member organizations and had received a €225,000 grant from the French Development Agency beginning in 2014, disbursed over three years.[1] The report did not establish that this grant funded the flotilla directly.[1] The flotilla's ten core coalition members spanned Europe, North America, and the Middle East, reflecting the broad international character of the organizing effort.[1]

Several aspects of Freedom Flotilla III remain disputed. Flotilla organizer Dror Feiler alleged that an unidentified party sabotaged compressors on two boats in the days before the voyage, implying Israeli intelligence involvement; this claim was reported in a Maariv commentary and was not independently verified in the available sources.[16] The IDF described the interception as proceeding without incident, while footage broadcast on Israeli television reportedly showed a commando deploying a taser against an activist during the boarding — though no injury from the taser was reported.[15]

The legality of the blockade and the interception was contested by the parties involved. Israeli officials described the attempt to breach the blockade as unlawful, while Feiler argued that boarding the Swedish-flagged vessel violated international law and Sweden's sovereignty; his position was an advocacy claim rather than a judicial determination.[7][3] The flotilla's humanitarian character was similarly disputed: organizers presented it as a nonviolent mission carrying aid and a political message, while Israeli officials characterized it as an unnecessary provocation aimed at delegitimizing Israel rather than delivering meaningful assistance.[2][3]