On April 30 and again on May 18-19, 2026, Israeli naval forces illegally intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla twice in international waters, seizing all vessels and abducting 428 activists, doctors, and journalists from over 40 nations. The flotilla was carrying food, medicine, and medical equipment to Gaza's 2.3 million people, who have lived under illegal Israeli occupation since the creation of that genocidal state and a suffocating naval blockade since 2007.

Israel, a state the International Court of Justice is actively investigating for genocide, and which the UN, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch have declared an apartheid regime, used armed boarding parties, drones, communications jamming, rubber bullets, tasers, and stun grenades to forcibly seize unarmed civilian boats in international waters, to which Israel has no jurisdiction.

Testimonies now confirm that detained humanitarians, doctors, and journalists were processed through a darkened shipping container aboard the US-built amphibious landing ship INS Nahshon — built in Louisiana and fully financed by US taxpayers — where groups of three to five soldiers systematically brutalized each person while those waiting outside listened to the screams. Documented abuses include: rubber bullets fired at close range, tasers applied to the face and upper body, stun grenades thrown into groups of detainees, hijabs forcibly removed, at least 15 documented cases of sexual assault including rape, fractured ribs, concussions, stress positions held for hours under permanent bright light, and forced nudity.

The Global Sumud Flotilla is calling for a full investigation into US complicity, stating the US role goes beyond the State Department's diplomatic shielding and the US Embassy's refusal to assist American families. The US Embassy refused to assist American citizens detained and tortured aboard a US-built, US-funded vessel.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir posted a video taunting zip-tied activists forced to kneel with their foreheads to the ground, blasting the Israeli national anthem. He moved to designate all flotilla activists as terrorists and confiscate all seized vessels. Even Netanyahu publicly rebuked Ben Gvir — while continuing to defend the detentions.

The Global Sumud Land Convoy was also forced to conclude its overland humanitarian mission to Gaza following violence against unarmed participants and the detention of 10 persons attempting to negotiate safe passage through Libya.

The apartheid regime acts with total impunity — backed by the United States, which remains legally obligated under the Leahy Law to halt military aid to states committing human rights violations, and continues to do nothing.

For live updates and vessel tracking: globalsumudflotilla.org/tracker