Sailing boats, part of the Global Sumud Flotilla aiming to reach Gaza and break Israel’s naval blockade, sail off Koufonisi islet, Greece, Sept. 26, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Stefanos Rapanis

The Israeli military intercepted the last boat in a flotilla attempting to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza on Friday, a day after stopping most of the vessels and detaining some 450 activists including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg.

The organizers of the Global Sumud Flotilla said the Marinette was intercepted some 42.5 nautical miles (79 km) from Gaza. Israeli army radio said the navy had taken control of the last ship in the flotilla, detained those aboard, and that the vessel was being led to Ashdod port in Israel.

In a statement, the Global Sumud Flotilla said Israeli naval forces had now “illegally intercepted all 42 of our vessels — each carrying humanitarian aid, volunteers, and the determination to break Israel’s illegal siege on Gaza.”

For nearly two decades Gaza has been ruled by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, which openly seeks Israel’s destruction and started the current war with its Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel.

However, in another attempt to challenge Israel‘s naval blockade, a new flotilla comprising 11 vessels was attempting to make its way to Gaza on Friday, organizers said, including a vessel carrying medics and journalists.

A live-tracker shared by the organizers showed the boats sailing southeast in the Mediterranean between the Greek island of Crete and Egypt, while live footage from one of the boats showed activists chanting for a “Free Palestine.”

MARINETTE PASSENGERS CLAIM TO SEE A WAR SHIP

A camera broadcasting from the Marinette showed someone holding up a note saying “We see a ship! It’s a war ship”, before a boat is seen approaching and soldiers boarding. A voice is heard telling the people on board not to move and to put their hands in the air.

An Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the boat’s status.

The flotilla, which set sail in late August, marked the latest attempt by activists to challenge the Israeli naval blockade of the territory where Israel has been waging an offensive to dismantle Hamas and free the hostages kidnapped by the terrorist group during its Oct. 7 attack.

Israeli officials have repeatedly denounced the mission as a stunt. The foreign ministry had said the flotilla was previously warned that it was approaching an active combat zone and violating a “lawful naval blockade,” and asked organizers to change course. It had offered to transfer aid to Gaza.

The Israeli foreign ministry on Friday said that four Italians had been deported. “The rest are in the process of being deported. Israel is keen to end this procedure as quickly as possible,” it said in a statement. All the flotilla participants were “safe and in good health,” it added.

The Italian government identified the four Italians as parliamentarians who would fly back to Rome on Friday.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators took to the streets in cities across Europe as well as in Karachi, Buenos Aires, and Mexico City on Thursday to protest the flotilla’s interception.

On Friday, tens of thousands of Italians demonstrated, as part of a day-long general strike called by unions in support of the flotilla.

BEN-GVIR CALLS ACTIVISTS ‘TERRORISTS’

During a visit to Ashdod on Thursday night, Israel‘s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was filmed calling the activists “terrorists” as he stood in front of them.

“These are the terrorists of the flotilla,” he said, speaking in Hebrew and pointing at dozens of people sitting on the ground. His spokesperson confirmed the video was filmed at Ashdod port on Thursday night.

Some activists are heard shouting “Free Palestine.”

Cyprus said one of the flotilla boats had docked in Cyprus with 21 foreigners aboard. Crew from the vessel, “Summer Time”, said it was an observer mission carrying doctors and journalists.

“Nobody has the right to be a pirate of the sea and enforce whatever they want to do and I think we are equal,” Palestinian crew member Osama Qashoo told journalists.

Israel faced international condemnation and protest after it intercepted all of the 40 or so boats in the flotilla and detained more than 450 activists from different countries.

Anti-Israel protesters demonstrate in front of the Central Bank of Ireland against the sale of Israeli bonds throughout the EU, in Dublin, Ireland, May 27, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne

Ireland is poised to curb planned sanctions on Israel, blunting a law central to its protest over the war in Gaza, after pressure from business groups concerned about the impact on investment, four people with knowledge of the matter said.

Ireland‘s government is one of the most outspoken critics of Israel‘s campaign against Hamas in Gaza but, unlike others such as Spain, it hosts the European headquarters of some of the US’s biggest companies, making it uniquely vulnerable to pressure from the US.

Mainly US-owned foreign multinationals employ around 11 percent of Irish workers and contribute most of the corporate tax that makes up almost a third of all Irish tax receipts.

Ireland has been preparing to sanction trade with Israeli communities in the West Bank and East Jerusalem for a year, provoking criticism from Israel, international company lobby groups, and threats of reprisal from US lawmakers.

Dublin would be moving ahead of any wider sanctions by the European Union, unnerving local business.

Business representatives in Ireland have this year urged the government to delay any law and reduce its scope, the sources said, to avoid antagonizing US companies and investors, discouraging them from investing in Ireland.

Government officials are now poised to limit the scope of the legislation to goods only, catching a handful of products imported from Israeli settlements such as fruit that are worth just 200,000 euros ($234,660.00) a year.

This would exclude the wider category of services that opposition parties have demanded be added, a move the government has been considering. Critics argue this could pull foreign multinational software companies, for example, into unworkable sanctions.

Although no final decision has been taken, the people said the government would likely follow the advice of some senior officials and business organizations who argued against widening the bill to services.

AWAITING ADVICE FROM ATTORNEY GENERAL

Foreign Minister Simon Harris has told parliament he would receive advice from the attorney general “shortly” on whether services can be included. He previously flagged concerns that it may not be legally possible.

A spokesperson for the foreign ministry pointed Reuters to comments by Harris in parliament on Thursday that the bill would be brought for debate before parliament breaks for holidays in mid-December but that wider European measures would have far more weight.

Business lobby groups and company representatives have in recent months visited government officials, underscoring their concerns that the bill will further upset relations with the US and Israel, the people said.

In those meetings, company representatives have argued that penalizing Israeli settlements could hit multinationals from the US, allied with Israel, and imperil investment in Ireland, an argument that resonated with some officials, the people said.

The Irish Business and Employers Confederation, the biggest industry lobby group, whose members include pharmaceutical, software, and banking companies, has publicly shared its concerns about Ireland‘s stance, saying the US could penalize multinational companies in Ireland for boycotting Israel.

FRAUGHT RELATIONS

The attention Dublin is getting over its stance on Gaza is coming at a delicate time for Ireland, whose pro-business corporate tax policies have helped turbocharge its economy.

Ireland sells around a third of its goods exports to the US, and is in the crosshairs of US President Donald Trump for sending far more to the US than it imports. It exported more than 72 billion euros of goods to the US last year.

Ireland is the European home of some of the biggest US tech firms, international finance, as well as a production hub for pharmaceutical giants who make and ship key elements of drugs such as Viagra, Botox and weight-loss treatment Zepbound.

Dublin is also pushing for a swift vote on proposals from the EU Commission to suspend free-trade arrangements on Israeli goods, although getting this through in the face of German opposition is in question.

After Ireland became the first EU country to commit to trade restrictions last October, Slovenia introduced a ban on imports of goods in August while Belgium, Spain, and the Netherlands announced similar bans on goods last month.

Ireland‘s relations with Israel have been fraught. Last December, Israel shut its embassy in Dublin amid a row over Ireland‘s criticism of its war in Gaza, including Ireland‘s recognition of a Palestinian state last year.

“I believe the idea that foreign investors would leave Ireland has been much exaggerated,” said Alice-Mary Higgins, a member of the joint committee on foreign affairs and trade, charged with scrutinizing the bill, who backs the inclusion of services.

“What is the alternative? To reward profiteering in goods and services on stolen land?”

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Tampa Bay, Florida, USA, Sept. 28, 2025, Philadelphia Eagles player AJ Dillon #29 at Raymond James Stadium. Photo: Marty Jean-Louis/Sipa USA

Philadelphia Eagles running back AJ Dillon talked to students at the University of Pennsylvania about the struggles of balancing his Jewish faith with the grueling schedule of his NFL career during an event hosted by Penn Hillel on Monday.

“I think there’s no perfect answer,” Dillon, 27, said during the event, as reported by the student-led newspaper The Daily Pennsylvanian. “The schedule can get hectic, but I think it’s trial and error with trying to figure out what works, and that might change in a couple months or a year as the season goes on.”

Dillon noted on Monday that his Jewish journey “wasn’t necessarily linear.”

“My mom’s side of my family is Jewish, and we did all the traditions and everything growing up. But once I started to get more into sports … [the] schedule gets a little busier,” he explained. He added that while “balancing faith” and his NFL career can be “challenging,” he tries to “be mindful of the things that are important.”

Monday’s event was moderated by Hillel co-[resident Ethan Farber and Wharton sophomore Orly Sedransk. The event was part of Penn Hillel’s new Jackie Reses Speaker Series, which will feature a conversation with Jewish writer and director Jesse Eisenberg on Nov. 20.

After Monday’s event, Dillon talked to The Daily Pennsylvanian and urged Jewish students to harness their Jewish faith and community to help them succeed.

“The great thing about being part of the Jewish community is you have a sense of belonging,” he said. “The reality is there’s not as many Jewish athletes. It’s always great when you are able to do something, no matter how big or how small, and have a platform.”