TEL AVIV, October 3. /TASS/. Israeli authorities have deported the first group of detained participants in the Sumud flotilla, which was intercepted by the Navy on its way to the Gaza Strip, the Jewish state's Foreign Ministry press service reported.
According to the statement, four Italian citizens were the first to be sent out. "The rest are in the process of being deported. Israel is keen to end this procedure as quickly as possible," the ministry said.
It stressed that all participants in the flotilla are safe and sound. Israel considers their attempt to break the Gaza siege to be a provocation.
The Sumud flotilla set sail from Tunisia towards Gaza in mid-September. It comprised more than 40 ships belonging to different countries, one of which carried activist Greta Thurnberg. The mission's goal was to break the siege of the Strip and deliver humanitarian aid to the enclave.
The Israeli government has repeatedly said it won't let these ships get close to Gaza, pointing to the naval blockade because of the fighting in the Palestinian enclave. The flotilla activists were offered to leave their cargo at the Israeli port of Ashkelon, closest to Gaza, or at any other country's port, from where the aid could then be delivered to Gaza. According to the Israeli Foreign Ministry, the activists rejected all these proposals.