McEntee calls for release of Irish activists detained after Gaza aid flotilla interception
A screengrab from one of the cameras onboard showing the interception of one of the vessels in the flotilla. Picture: eire_globalsumud
The foreign affairs minister has called for the immediate release of all Irish activists who were arrested by Israeli forces after ships that were part of the Global Sumud Flotilla were intercepted and seized off the coast of Greece.
Flotilla organisers said seven Irish activists were "kidnapped" after the vessels were intercepted. They are Catriona Graham, Fiacc O’Brolchain, Robert Murphy, Colm Byrne, Martin Guilfoyle, Michael Fix and John Connellan.
A spokesperson for the group said 22 Irish people are involved in the flotilla and described it as “a peaceful humanitarian mission bringing aid and aiming to break the siege on Gaza”.
They said their boats were in international waters off the coast of the Greek island of Crete when Israeli authorities “rammed” and boarded their vessels.
President Catherine Connolly’s sister is part of the flotilla, but is not believed to be among the activists being held.
A video of Dr Margaret Connolly on board a boat was posted to Instagram on Wednesday night, with a caption stating that “surrounding boats” were being intercepted.
Israel's Foreign Ministry said some 175 activists were arrested after 20 ships were intercepted.
In a statement on Friday morning, Helen McEntee called on Israeli authorities to "immediately release all Irish citizens detained during this operation, to uphold their obligations under international law, and to guarantee the safety and welfare of all those on board".
"Officials from my Department, including staff at Embassy Athens and Embassy Tel Aviv, have been engaging with the relevant authorities and stand ready to provide consular assistance to any Irish citizens arriving in Greece as a result of these developments," she said.
"My clear priority is the safety and well-being of all Irish citizens involved," Ms McEntee added.
The daughter of Robert Murphy, who was arrested, said she and her family have not been in contact since the interception.
Natilie Murphy said the boat he was on, the "Magic Boat", had gone silent after they were tracking in on the Global Sumud Flotilla tracker online.
"We weren’t able to get through to him on the phone … we have just assumed at that point that he had been captured," she told RTÉ's Morning Ireland on Thursday.
She said being boarded in darkness, "with a gun in your face must be so terrifying".
"We still haven't actually spoken to him, which we are so anxious to just hear from him at this point," she said.
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