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SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

‘We will not forget’: Last words from the Marinette

Just before Israeli soldiers boarded the Marinette on Friday to take control of the last flotilla vessel they hadn’t seized until then, crew members on the aid boat chanted about Gaza.

“From the sea to Gaza – we will not forget you,” went the words, recorded in a video shared by Middle East Eye.


Notable activists detained in Israel include Greta Thunberg, Mandla Mandela, and Chris Smalls.

The Turkish state-run Anadolu Agency has compiled a list of some of the notable flotilla activists currently in Israeli detention.

Israel is thought to have detained more than 500 activists, who it is accused of having intercepted illegally as they were attempting to bring aid to the besieged enclave of Gaza.

Among them, the agency notes, are:

Greta Thunberg
The Swedish climate activist, widely known for her global climate advocacy, has also participated in multiple Gaza aid flotillas, including the Global Sumud Flotilla.

Nkosi Zwelivelile “Mandla” Mandela
A South African activist and former legislator, Mandela is the grandson of the iconic anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela.

Ada Colau
Spanish politician and activist Colau served as mayor of Barcelona from 2015 until 2023.

Juan Bordera
Bordera, a Spanish screenwriter, journalist and writer, is also an elected representative from Spain’s Compromís Coalition.

Pilar Castillejo
Castillejo serves as a member of Catalonia’s regional parliament in Spain.

Rima Hassan
A human rights advocate and member of France Unbowed, Hassan also represents her party in the European Parliament.

Maria Celeste Fierro
Fierro is an Argentinian politician and activist.

Mariana Mortagua
An economist and parliamentarian, Mortagua sits in Portugal’s national legislature.

Emma Fourreau
Fourreau, affiliated with France Unbowed, combines her work in climate activism with a seat in the European Parliament.

Chris Andrews
An Irish Sinn Fein politician, Andrews has served as a senator representing the Labour Panel since January.

Thiago Avila
Avila, a Brazilian human rights activist and member of the flotilla’s steering committee, has previously taken part in Gaza aid missions and was detained by Israeli authorities.

Tadhg Hickey
Hickey is an Irish comedian, writer, filmmaker, and human rights campaigner.

Chris Smalls
An American labour organiser and human rights advocate, Smalls is known for his activism within the labour movement.

Kleoniki Alexopoulou
Alexopoulou, a historian from Greece, is part of the flotilla’s steering committee.

Luizianne Lins
Lins, a journalist and politician, formerly served as mayor of Fortaleza, Brazil’s fourth-largest city.

Arturo Scotto
Scotto is a legislator in Italy’s Chamber of Deputies.

Mushtaq Ahmed
A Pakistani politician, Ahmed previously served as a senator.

Muhammad Nadir Al-Nuri
Al-Nuri, a Malaysian humanitarian activist, has coordinated multiple aid missions to Gaza.


Four deported flotilla participants are Italian parliamentarians

The Italian government has identified the four flotilla participants who have so far been deported by Israel as Italian parliamentarians.

“The four parliamentarians, with whom I spoke with this morning, are leaving Ben Gurion Airport,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said earlier today. “They are accompanied by a diplomat from our embassy in Tel Aviv.”

The four parliamentarians are Senator Marco Croatti, Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Annalisa Corrado, MEP Arturo Scotto, and MEP Benedetta Scuderi.


Mikeno, the one flotilla boat that made it to Gaza’s waters

Israel has intercepted and captured all 44 of the vessels of the Gaza Sumud Flotilla, an aid campaign aiming to break the naval blockade of the Palestinian territory devastated by Israel’s war and starvation.

But one – the only one – of the flotilla’s boats did manage to reach Gaza’s waters, according to a tracker maintained by the organisers: The Mikeno.

According to the tracker, the Mikeno reached well within the 12 nautical miles (equivalent to 22km) off Gaza’s coast that constitute the maritime territory of a nation. Gaza, of course, has been under an Israeli blockade for 18 years, and Israeli ships control the region’s waters – illegally.

The Mikeno was intercepted on Thursday, October 2, at 11:21am (8:21 GMT), when Israeli troops attacked it with a water cannon, video shared by activists on board suggests.

The boat had previously lost its signal, raising concerns about its whereabouts, before it returned on the tracker, within Gaza’s territorial waters.



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SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

French opposition leader calls on Macron to expel Israeli envoy

Mathilde Panot, deputy leader of the France Unbowed party, has urged the French president to expel Israel’s ambassador to Paris, Joshua Zarka, following Israel’s seizure of the Global Sumud Flotilla.

Panot, speaking on French RTL Radio, said: “This morning, I officially request the president [Emmanuel Macron] to expel Israel’s ambassador to France.

“It is unacceptable that a representative of a state that has illegally hijacked a legitimate mission to break the blockade three times is allowed to remain in our territory any longer.”

Diplomatic relations with Israel should be severed, Panot said, expressing her satisfaction with Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s decision to expel Israel’s diplomats from his country.

The Global Sumud Flotilla, en route to break the Israeli blockade and deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, approached the enclave’s waters on October 1 before being intercepted and stopped by Israel.



Israel’s Ben-Gvir urges for flotilla activists to be jailed rather than deported

Israel’s far-right national security minister has said deporting activists from the Global Sumud Flotilla is a mistake, arguing they should instead be jailed for several months.

“I think they must be kept here for a few months in an Israeli prison, so that they get used to the smell of the terrorist wing,” said Ben-Gvir in a post on X.

He said that by simply returning them to their countries, Israel’s PM Netanyahu is encouraging the activists to “to return time and time again”.

Earlier, as we reported, Ben-Gvir appeared on video berating the detained flotilla passengers, calling them “terrorists” as they sat on the ground of what appears to be Israel’s Ashdod port.


Greece to lodge diplomatic protest over Ben-Gvir’s remarks, local media says

Greece’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been angered by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s remarks regarding flotilla activists, local media is reporting.

Ben-Gvir called Global Sumud Flotilla activists “terrorists” when he entered a detention centre yesterday.

News site To Vima, citing the Greek-language site In, said the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs may formally summon the Israeli ambassador to lodge a formal protest as Greek authorities are meanwhile “additionally considering dispatching a military transport plane to Israel to repatriate Greek citizens who were among the flotilla participants”.

Earlier today, four Greek opposition parties released a joint statement condemning Israel’s handling of the flotilla, To Vima said. Twenty-seven Greek nationals participated.



Flotilla organisers slam Israeli disinformation around aid for Gaza

The Global Sumud Flotilla has rejected as “obscene” the Israeli government’s false claims that the Gaza-bound vessels were not carrying aid to Palestinians in the starved enclave.

“The boats were meticulously documented, loaded with medical supplies, food, and other life-saving goods for people in Gaza being systematically starved by Israel,” the group said in a statement.

It added that “Israel’s disinformation is not new”.

“This is the same regime that claimed it was not bombing hospitals, not starving Palestinians, not obstructing convoys, not executing civilians and aid workers, not burying 15 paramedics and their ambulances in a shallow grave. Every one of those lies has been exposed,” the flotilla organisers said.

Israel always lies..



SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Flotilla activists denied access to lawyers, water, medications: Adalah

Adalah, a Palestinian legal centre in Israel, says members of the Global Sumud Flotilla were initially denied access to lawyers for hours after their vessels were seized by Israeli authorities.

“Despite repeated denials of entry by Israeli police, Adalah lawyers eventually managed to access the port [of Ashdod] and provide consultations to the 331 participants,” the group said in a statement shared on WhatsApp.

“Several participants reported being subjected to aggression, threats, and harassment, including being woken violently whenever they tried to sleep.”

Adalah said Israel transferred the detainees to Ktzi’ot Prison in Israel’s southern Negev region without alerting their lawyers. The group said the activists are in “relatively stable condition” as its lawyers attend hearings to review their detention orders.

“Adalah is pursuing legal measures to guarantee that every single participant is accounted for, while continuing prison visits,” it said. “Adalah also calls for their immediate release from unlawful detention, and the retrieval of their personal belongings and humanitarian aid supplies.”


A boy attends a protest to condemn Israel’s interception of the flotilla, in Rome, Italy, October 3


Lawyers call for release of Gaza flotilla activists

Adalah, a Palestinian legal centre in Israel, says members of the Global Sumud Flotilla detained in Israel must be released from their “unlawful detention”, hours after their boats were seized on the way to Gaza.

Adalah said its lawyers were initially denied access to the detainees, but it has since been able to meet with and provide consultations to 331 flotilla participants.

“Several participants reported being subjected to aggression, threats, and harassment, including being woken violently whenever they tried to sleep,” the group said in a statement shared on WhatsApp.

Adalah said Israel transferred the detainees to Ktzi’ot Prison in Israel’s southern Negev region without alerting their lawyers. The group said the activists are in “relatively stable condition” as its lawyers attend hearings to review their detention orders.

“Adalah is pursuing legal measures to guarantee that every single participant is accounted for, while continuing prison visits,” it said.



SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Israelis protest against Gaza flotilla interception


Israeli forces surround a demonstrator during a protest against Israel’s interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla, near the frontier with Gaza in southern Israel, on October 3


Israeli army calls Gaza aid flotilla ‘incursion attempt’

Israel’s military has applauded its naval forces for intercepting the Global Sumud Flotilla, claiming the humanitarian mission attempted to breach its “maritime security blockade”.

“During Yom Kippur, in an operation that lasted approximately 12 hours, Israeli Navy personnel foiled a large-scale incursion attempt by hundreds of individuals aboard 42 naval vessels that declared their intention to break the lawful maritime security blockade adjacent to the Gaza Strip,” the military statement said.

Rights groups, several politicians and the UN’s Francesca Albanese have suggested Israel’s interception of the flotilla’s boats was illegal.

The naval blockade has been illegal since 2005... 



SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Trump threatens Hamas, gives group Sunday deadline to respond to Gaza plan

US President Donald Trump says the Palestinian group has until Sunday at 6pm in Washington, DC (22:00 GMT) to respond to his 20-point Gaza plan.

“If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas,” Trump wrote in a lengthy post on his Truth Social platform. “THERE WILL BE PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST ONE WAY OR THE OTHER,” he added in all caps.

Trump threatened Hamas several times in the post, claiming its members “are surrounded and MILITARILY TRAPPED, just waiting for me to give the word, ‘GO,’ for their lives to be quickly extinguished”.

“As for the rest, we know where and who you are, and you will be hunted down, and killed. I am asking that all innocent Palestinians immediately leave this area of potentially great future death for safer parts of Gaza. Everyone will be well cared for by those that are waiting to help,” he said.

Hamas political bureau member Mohammad Nazzal told our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic yesterday that the Palestinian group will soon announce its position on the US proposal.

Nazzal said Hamas, as a representative of the Palestinian resistance, has a right to express its views “in a way that serves the interests” of the Palestinian people. “We are not dealing [with the plan] with the logic that time is a sword pointed at our neck,” Nazzal said.



Palestinian rights must be at heart of any Gaza plan: UN experts

A group of UN experts has warned that elements of Trump’s proposal for the Gaza Strip are “deeply inconsistent” with international law – and could lead to further violations of Palestinian rights.

“Imposing an immediate peace at any price, regardless of or brazenly against law and justice, is a recipe for further injustice, future violence and instability,” they said in a joint statement.

Among other issues, the experts said the plan:

  • Does not guarantee the Palestinian right to self-determination
  • Includes the establishment of a “temporary transitional government” that is not representative of Palestinians
  • Would allow for a partial Israeli occupation of Gaza to continue indefinitely, something that “is absolutely unacceptable”
  • Imposes “deradicalisation” on Palestinians alone while ignoring “anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab sentiments, radicalisation and public incitement to genocide [that] have been hallmarks of dominant rhetoric in Israel over the past two years”.


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SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Trump plan fuels questions among war-weary Palestinians in Gaza

Hopes are mixed, if not outright weary, about Donald Trump’s new ceasefire plan.

On paper, many Palestinians desperately want peace; they say enough to their suffering, enough to their losses, they want to see a genuine window of relief. But for many others, this plan smells like old wine in a new bottle.

They say, who crafted it? Hamas was not heavily engaged in diplomatic discussions; they only received the proposal once it was announced by the American president. And for many others, they want to see concrete steps being taken on the ground to ensure the commitment of the Israeli side to comprehensively accept every term of the agreement.

Also, there is a sense of optimism about the success of this round of discussions. But the air is filled with a sense of fear that this round might collapse as a house of cards, simply because many of the conditions favour the Israeli side.

People are still waiting for Hamas’s response. They realise that if Hamas says no, there will be more military pressure on Gaza … which means that more families will be displaced and more families will be killed.

UN humanitarian chief reiterates call for access to Gaza

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher says Trump’s Gaza plan “opens a window of opportunity” to get aid into Gaza and secure the release of Israeli captives held in the enclave.

“We are ready and eager to act,” Fletcher said in a statement, noting that the United Nations has 170,000 tonnes of food, medicine, shelter infrastructure and other supplies ready to enter the Strip from across the region.

“For our lifesaving plan to succeed, we need: open crossings; safe movement for civilians and aid workers; unrestricted entry of goods; visas for staff; the space for humanitarians to operate; and the private sector to be revived,” he said.

“This nightmare has gone on too long. Every minute of delay brings more misery. But we now have a chance to deliver. We call on all parties to agree to a ceasefire, give us the access, let us work.”

Israel has maintained a strict blockade on Gaza for months, blocking deliveries of life-saving assistance and plunging the territory into a humanitarian crisis. The world’s top hunger monitor confirmed in August that Gaza City and surrounding areas were experiencing famine.



SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Hamas says ready to release all Israeli captives, discuss details of Trump plan

The Palestinian group says that, in order to end Israel’s war on Gaza and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the enclave, it is ready to release all Israeli captives – both those who are living and dead – according to the exchange plan outlined in Trump’s proposal.

“In this context, the movement affirms its readiness to immediately enter into negotiations through the mediators to discuss the details of this agreement,” Hamas said in a statement shared on Telegram.


It also said it agrees to hand over the administration of Gaza to an independent body of Palestinian technocrats, “based on Palestinian national consensus and Arab and Islamic support”.

“Other issues mentioned in President Trump’s proposal regarding the future of the Gaza Strip and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people are connected to a unified national position and relevant international laws and resolutions,” Hamas said.

They “will be addressed through a comprehensive Palestinian national framework, in which Hamas will participate and contribute responsibly”.


Even if Gaza deal reached, history shows pattern of Israeli violations

Lara Elborno, an international lawyer and human rights activist, explains that Israel has unilaterally violated Gaza ceasefire agreements multiple times in the past – and there has been no political will to hold the country to its commitments.

“That’s what we saw in the last ceasefire that should have continued to the next phases several months ago,” Elborno told Al Jazeera.

“Instead, what we’ve seen is Israel continuing to engineer famine in the Gaza Strip, scaling up its attacks and invasion of Gaza City and ordering all the residents of Gaza City to be expelled so that it can complete [the city’s] destruction … and the continued preventing of unfettered humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.”

Against that backdrop, Elborno said her concern is that, if Hamas agrees to Trump’s 20-point Gaza proposal, there won’t be a mechanism to compel Israel to comply with its obligations.


Abbas reiterates commitment to hosting elections one year after war ends

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says Palestine is in a “pivotal and decisive stage” as he reaffirms plans to host general elections one year after a ceasefire, the Palestinian news agency Wafa is reporting.

Abbas said authorities were drafting a temporary constitution for the state – to be completed within three months – that would serve as the basis for the transition from authority to state.

Along with placing a timeline on elections, a commitment that was also made in the New York Declaration, the president affirmed his “determination to continue efforts to broaden international recognition of the State of Palestine and to secure full membership in the United Nations”.

“No party, political force, or individual may run for office unless they commit to the political program and the international and legal obligations of the Palestine Liberation Organization,” Abbas added.



SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Hamas says ‘yes, but’ in response to Trump’s plan

The statement by Hamas mentions that there are questions with respect to some points.

They’ve accepted mainly the idea of exchange [of captives], and the idea of a Palestinian technocrat administration of Gaza. However, they have questions on other points, mainly when it comes to the issues such as the international administration of Gaza.

Hamas’s statement says that the future of Gaza – the future of the whole struggle – will be left to Palestinian consensus. They want a broader Palestinian consensus to reach a final answer.

So, what’s clear is that Hamas said, “Yes – but …”

There are big gaps with respect to disarming Hamas, and there are also big gaps with respect to the international body that will govern Gaza, which President Trump has called the “peace council”.

Hamas has a lot of reservations on this, because it isolates Gaza from the core Palestinian cause, and this is probably something Hamas is taking into consideration.

Far-right members of Netanyahu’s cabinet see US plan as defeat

Fifty hours from now is the deadline that US President Trump set for a response to this deal, and Hamas sent a response saying that they’re ready to discuss how they are going to move forward with the specifics and the details that are laid out in Trump’s 20-point plan.

But you have to remember that when Netanyahu arrived back to Israel from the United States [this week], it was a Jewish holiday in Israel; so there was no meeting with his government, there was no meeting with his cabinet, and now we are in Shabbat, meaning there’s also no government meeting. So, Netanyahu’s government hasn’t actually sat down to discuss this.

Some in the Israeli government see this as a defeat for Israel because it would grant amnesty to members of Hamas, there is no territory being annexed, [and] Palestinians will not have to be forcibly displaced and expelled from their homeland – that’s what a lot of members of Netanyahu’s government wanted.

But it’s not what’s going to happen as part of this deal.

Some in Hamas’s military wing had ‘reservations’ over Trump’s proposal

It’s worth pointing out that once this new proposal was put forward at the high-level United Nations week, Hamas and its interlocutors had been looking over the 21-point – now 20-point – plan to try to bring an end to the war on Gaza.

So, this has been under consideration.

This proposal, which had been put together with the special envoy [to the Middle East] Steve Witkoff, had been under consideration, had been under discussion, between Qatar, between other Arab countries and Hamas leadership.

There had been some reporting in the last 24 hours that perhaps some in the military wing of Hamas had serious reservations about this proposal, but Hamas does appear to be willing to accept some, if not most of the proposal.

That is probably what you’d expect to see in a situation like this: that everything needs to be hammered out so that both, or all parties, agree to all the points.

Things aren’t usually just offered and accepted without some subsidiary discussions.

 



SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Trump plan cannot be implemented without negotiations: Hamas official

Mousa Abu Marzouk has spoken to our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic about Hamas’s response to Trump’s Gaza proposal.

Here are the key takeaways from the Hamas official’s remarks:

  • Hamas agreed to a regional and international vision presented by Egypt.
  • Trump’s plan cannot be implemented without negotiations.
  • The group dealt positively with the points that concern Hamas in Trump’s proposal.
  • Plans for a peacekeeping force for Gaza require greater understanding and clarification.
  • The priority is to stop Israel’s war and massacres in Gaza.
  • The handover of Israeli captives within 72 hours is theoretical and unrealistic under the current circumstances.
  • Hamas will enter into talks on all issues related to the group and its weapons.
  • Hamas has reached a national consensus to hand Gaza’s administration over to independents, with the Palestinian Authority responsible for that.


Hamas’s Abu Marzouk rejects Trump-led ‘Board of Peace’

Mousa Abu Marzouk has rejected a tenet of Trump’s Gaza proposal that says the US president will head a transitional oversight body for Gaza – the “Board of Peace” – alongside other officials, including ex-UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Abu Marzouk told Al Jazeera that Palestinians will never accept any kind of outside body having control over them. “Palestinians should control themselves,” the Hamas official said.

Under Trump’s plan, the board would set a framework and handle the funding for Gaza’s redevelopment until the Palestinian Authority completes reforms and can take over.

“We will never accept anyone who is not Palestinian to control the Palestinians,” Abu Marzouk said, adding that Blair specifically is unwelcome.

“We can’t bring someone like Tony Blair to be governor in Gaza because this man, he destroyed Iraq,” he said, referring to the former British leader’s decision to join the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.

 

Hamas wants deep talks on major questions left by Trump’s plan

Trump’s plan for Gaza “lacked a clear political horizon” and will require deep negotiation before it becomes operational, a political analyst has told Al Jazeera.

Sultan Barakat, a public policy professor at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar, told Al Jazeera the 20 points are better likened to “principles” and have left major questions about the future of Gaza up for debate.

“For it to be made operational, they need to sit together and they need to talk together,” Barakat said, adding that such discussions must place Palestinians “right at the centre”.

Longer-term questions range from the end of the Israeli occupation to linking the West Bank and Gaza, Barakat said.

“These are legitimate demands – these are all what would actually lead to a peace plan,” he continued. “So in effect, what [Hamas has] done, is said, ‘Let’s now stop the killing, you take your hostages, and let’s talk about what can happen in the future.'”



SvennoJ on 03 October 2025

Trump recording response to Hamas statement: White House

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, has shared a photo on social media, showing Trump responding to what she said was “Hamas’ acceptance of his Peace Plan”.

The US president also shared an English translation of Hamas’s statement on his Truth Social platform, without additional comment.

“Is that an endorsement, or is that simply an acknowledgement of the fact that Hamas has responded? It’s not clear,” Al Jazeera’s Rosiland Jordan reported from Washington, DC.

Trump says Hamas response means Israel must stop bombing Gaza to get captives out

“Based on the Statement just issued by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE. Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly!” the US president has written on his Truth Social account.

“Right now, it’s far too dangerous to do that. We are already in discussions on details to be worked out. This is not about Gaza alone, this is about long sought PEACE in the Middle East.”

Qatar welcomes Hamas response, Trump call for Israel to stop bombing Gaza

The spokesman for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry says the Gulf country has welcomed Hamas’s response to Trump’s Gaza plan, including the group’s readiness to release all Israeli captives.

In a statement shared on social media, Majed al-Ansari said Qatar also affirmed its support for Trump’s call for an immediate ceasefire in the Strip to allow for the safe release of the captives and “put an end to the bloodshed of Palestinians”.

“At the same time, the State of Qatar affirms that it has begun working with its partners in the mediation the Arab Republic of Egypt, in coordination with the United States of America, to continue discussions on the plan in order to ensure a path toward ending the war,” al-Ansari said.