Global Sumud Flotilla: May Allah Protect Them

Receiving news, three out of more than forty ships participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) humanitarian mission have successfully been intercepted and all of its passengers have been taken to the port of Israel. As of 6 AM this morning (October 2, 2025, Malaysia time), 13 volunteers from Malaysia have been detained and are expected to be imprisoned in Israel as reported by those involved in the food and medicine aid mission to Gaza.

One of the Malaysian volunteers, Zizi Kirana, who was on the Huga ship, appealed to the government to urgently work to rescue the volunteers. Since the GSF mission entered the yellow zone, they have been threatened by Israeli military ships even though the volunteers did not provoke or violate international regulations.

The three detained ships involve 13 Malaysian volunteers. Through social media, they shared that the Israeli military has carried out various provocations to prevent all involved missions from continuing their voyage to Gaza, even when it was still in international waters.

Israel’s actions clearly violate international regulations because entering Gaza’s waters does not mean invading Israel. Legally, Israel cannot control Gaza as it is not legally recognized as Israeli territory. Israel still considers every inch of Gaza to be under its control, and therefore, any action to reach Gaza by any means is “a form of violation” against Israeli law, a form of barbaric law that is inhumane.

The Prime Minister in a statement this morning (October 2, 2025) strongly condemned Israel’s actions regarding the detention and blockade carried out because the GSF is joined by civilians who do not carry any weapons; they are present to deliver humanitarian aid, not to assist Hamas in warfare.

Anwar Ibrahim said, “I strongly condemn Israel’s interception of the GSF. These ships carry unarmed civilians and humanitarian supplies to save the people of Gaza, yet they are met with intimidation and coercion.

“By blocking humanitarian missions, Israel shows complete contempt not only for the rights of the Palestinian people but also for the conscience of the world.”

Before that, Anwar promised to seek assistance from the international community, including friends from Europe, to take action or help if the humanitarian mission involving more than 43 countries is subjected to actions by Israel. This GSF mission is coordinated by Malaysian volunteers and involves more than 600 volunteers to breach Israel’s ‘blockade’ against Gaza.

Since the Gaza-Israel conflict began, which has now lasted two years, more than 65,000 Palestinians have been killed, most of whom are civilians including children, women, and the elderly. Thousands of buildings have been bombed with weapons made in America and several European countries.

The series of violent and indiscriminate attacks has caused Gaza to be in a severe humanitarian crisis. It is estimated that more than two million people have lost their homes, and children will grow up in a state of malnutrition while the medical sector is also paralyzed without supplies of medicine and equipment.

Israel also kills anyone, including medical personnel, and this brutal killing has been labeled as genocide. Israel, which claims to have the most moral army in the world, has tarnished its own claim by imposing various obstacles and restrictions on various humanitarian missions to Gaza.

The international community not only condemns Israel’s violence but is also increasingly bold and vocal in stating its position on the rights of Palestine as a state, and on the international stage, Israel is increasingly isolated, so much so that when Benjamin Netanyahu took the stage to speak, more than 77 international representatives walked out of the hall. This embarrassing incident occurred at the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on September 26, 2025, when representatives discussed Palestine’s status as an independent and sovereign state. During that speech, the conference hall appeared almost empty, and the GSF mission was already halfway to Gaza.

Two more ships carrying volunteers were successfully intercepted by Israel, namely the Alma and Sirius ships. The Malaysian volunteers on the Alma ship are Musa Nuwayri, Illylia Balqis, and Sul Aidil, while the volunteers on the Sirius ship are Haikal Abdullah, Muaz Zainal, Zulfadhli Khiduddin, and Rusydi Ramli. Additionally, PU Rahmat was reported to have also been detained by Israel along with an international human rights figure, Greta Thunberg. Greta is a 22-year-old female environmental activist from Sweden.

All the ships that were successfully intercepted by Israel occurred in Zone R3, which is in the position of the first red zone before reaching the shores of Gaza. According to maritime law, 100 kilometers from the coast of a country is classified as a zone owned by that country. In this case, the zone controlled by Israel illegally is divided into three, and R1 is the zone very close to the coast.

The humanitarian mission to Gaza by sea began in 2008, after Israel launched repeated attacks following Hamas’s victory in the Palestinian elections in 2006. Although international observers deemed the elections to be perfect and legitimate based on democratic principles, Israel and the United States did not recognize Hamas’s victory.

Two countries, supported by their allies, were disappointed because their sponsored party Fatah could only secure 41 percent of the votes, especially in the West Bank. Hamas won a majority with 51 percent of the votes, causing Palestine to be split in two, with Gaza controlled by Hamas and the West Bank by Fatah, which leads the Palestinian Authority through the Oslo Accords of 1993. The brutal history of Israel against humanitarian missions to Gaza is marked by the killing of Rachel Corrie, a female volunteer from the United States on March 16, 2003. Rachel Corrie was crushed by an Israeli army bulldozer in Rafah.

This incident revived the aid mission by sea (2008) and in 2010, an international convoy known as the Freedom Flotilla (or Mavi Marmara) was carried out from Turkey and included international volunteers, including Malaysians. However, the convoy was attacked in the early morning in international waters (May 31, 2010) and all the ships participating were towed to the port of Ashdod. In that dawn attack, 9 volunteers were shot dead by elite Israeli military forces using helicopters. The rest were detained, and the tragedy strained diplomatic relations between Israel and Turkey, as eight of its volunteers were killed. In that attack, 80 volunteers were injured due to Israeli military gunfire.

This time, the volunteers participating in the humanitarian mission have increased, and during their journey, they were escorted by two military ships from Italy and Spain. However, after entering the Yellow Zone (300 kilometers from the coast of Gaza), the two ships no longer acted as escorts. According to reports, it was taken over by a Turkish military ship. During the attack while in R3, it is unknown whether the Turkish military ship was still present or not.

Last Friday, all mosques in the Federal Territory held a special prayer for the safety of the volunteers heading to Gaza. The public was also encouraged to do the same and was asked to recite Qunut Nazilah so that all blockades and obstacles would be eased.

As Muslims who love peace, we should continue to pray that all volunteers who are being detained and are still on their way to Gaza remain steadfast and are saved from all calamities, even though we are aware that the Israeli military is the most immoral military force in the world and is reckless in making decisions without compassion.