A senior Israeli official tells Channel 12 news that if a high-profile activist mission is allowed to sail to Gaza, a “wave of flotillas” will come to challenge the blockade.
The official says that if the vessel does not turn back, it will be boarded by Navy commandos and taken to Ashdod port.
“We are surrounding Gaza from every direction in order to strangle Hamas and not enable [Gaza] to get any aid from any factor that is not overseen by Israel. If we allow one flotilla to enter, masses will follow, and this provocation [by Greta Thunberg’s boat] will create a wave of flotillas that are hostile to Israel. We will not let this happen,” the official adds.
The Madleen boat was organized by the pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel Freedom Flotilla Coalition. Among the 12 activists on the ship are Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, Brazilian activist Thiago Avila and Rima Hassan, a French-Palestinian European Parliament member.
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