Mother of Australian on board Gaza aid flotilla calls Canberra's response to Israel’s interception 'reprehensible'

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) - The mother of an Australian on board the Gaza-bound Global Sumud Flotilla has called Canberra's response to its interception by Israeli naval forces "reprehensible," local media reported Thursday.

Julie Webb-Pullman said she is concerned for her daughter Bianca’s safety, said local broadcaster SBS News.

Bianca threw her mobile phone overboard, but the family has continued to receive updates from the flotilla's family liaison.

The flotilla, consisting of more than 40 vessels and over 500 volunteers from around 40 countries, was intercepted Wednesday by the Israeli Navy approximately 80 nautical miles (148 kilometers) from Gaza.

According to the flotilla’s organizers, nine of its vessels were intercepted and one was rammed while still in international waters.

In response, the Israeli Foreign Ministry announced that “several boats" of the flotilla had been "detained" and that their passengers were being transferred to an Israeli port. The ministry described the fleet as the "Hamas Flotilla" on its official X account.

Israel has maintained a blockade on Gaza, which is home to nearly 2.4 million people, for nearly 18 years and further tightened the siege in March when it closed border crossings and blocked food and medicine deliveries, pushing the enclave into famine.

The Israeli army has killed more than 66,100 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in Gaza since October 2023.

The UN and rights groups have repeatedly warned that the enclave is being rendered uninhabitable, with starvation and disease spreading rapidly.