FO condemns the mistreatment of flotilla activists and calls for the release of prisoners, including Pakistani citizens

Pakistan on Thursday condemned the “illegal interception” of the global Sumud flotilla by Israeli forces in international waters and called for the immediate release of all detained humanitarian activists, including a Pakistani humanitarian activist Saad Edhi.

A statement from the Foreign Ministry stated that Pakistan condemned “in the strongest possible terms” the Israeli occupation forces’ interception of the flotilla as well as the “arbitrary detention and reported ill-treatment of humanitarian workers on board.”

It said those detained reportedly included Pakistani humanitarian activist Saad Edhi, grandson of Abdul Sattar Edhi, the renowned philanthropist.

“Pakistan demands the immediate release of all illegally detained activists,” the statement said. “It also calls on the international community to ensure the safety, dignity and fundamental rights of those detained.”

The FO said it remained in touch with Pakistani diplomatic missions in the region regarding the matter and to ensure the safe return of all detained Pakistani nationals.

Earlier this week, organizers said Israeli forces had intercepted 39 of their boats in the eastern Mediterranean, while the remaining vessels continued to sail towards the enclave.

Ships from the Global Sumud Flotilla had sailed for the third time from southern Turkey on Thursday, after previous attempts to deliver aid to Gaza were intercepted by Israel in international waters.

Read: Pakistan, nine countries condemn Israeli attack on Gaza-bound flotilla

426 people participated in the flotilla of 54 vessels from 39 countries, with the Global Sumud Flotilla naming 44 Turks among those on the intercepted vessel, about 250 nautical miles (463 km) from Gaza.

The Israeli military arrested aid workers who were part of the flotilla transporting relief supplies to the people of Gaza. The arrested belong to different countries. Among those detained is Saad Edhi, who represented Pakistan and was on his way to Gaza with his team.

Edhi Foundation chairman Faisal Edhi claimed that Israeli forces had detained his son, Saad, along with other volunteers.

In a message on Meta, Faisal said that around 13:00 Pakistan Standard Time Israeli forces intercepted the Gaza aid flotilla near Cyprus in international waters and arrested his son along with other volunteers.

“They were in international waters and Israeli forces have no right to arrest them. We do not know where they have taken them,” he said.

Faisal had appealed to the federal government and the foreign ministry to take legal action against the Israeli forces for detaining a Pakistani national.

A day earlier, Pakistan joined nine other nations in a joint condemnation of Israel’s interception of the Gaza-bound flotilla. The foreign ministers of Turkiye, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Libya, Maldives and Spain signed the statement, which described the Global Sumud Flotilla as a peaceful civilian humanitarian mission that seeks to highlight the harsh conditions facing the Palestinians and called Israel’s attack on it completely unacceptable.

Read more: Israel says 430 Gaza flotilla activists are being transferred to Israel

The Human Rights Council of Pakistan also strongly condemned the attack on the Global Sumud Flotilla and the arrest and torture of human rights activists, including Saad Edhi, describing the act as a blatant violation of human rights, humanitarian aid and freedom of expression.

Israel controls all entry points to Gaza, which has been under an Israeli blockade since 2007. During Israel’s intensified assault on Gaza since October 2023, the territory has suffered severe shortages of food, medicine and other essential supplies, with Israel at times halting aid deliveries altogether.

An earlier flotilla attempt was intercepted last month in international waters off Greece, with most activists deported to Europe.