Extract from ABC News
In short:
Israeli forces have fired "non-lethal" shots at two boats in an aid flotilla that was sailing towards Gaza.
Over the past two days, organisers say Israeli forces have intercepted 50 boats and detained hundreds of passengers, including 11 Australians.
What's next?
A spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong says the government is engaging with Israeli authorities on the welfare of detained Australians.
Israeli forces have fired on at least two vessels in an aid flotilla sailing towards Gaza, but Israel said no live ammunition was used and there were no casualties.
The Global Sumud Flotilla was making a renewed attempt to break Israel's naval blockade on Gaza and deliver aid, after Israel intercepted earlier missions in international waters.
Over the past two days, organisers say hundreds of passengers have been detained after Israel boarded dozens of boats off the coast of Cyprus, destroying many of the vessels, "which carried a combined hundreds of tonnes of aid".
There are 11 Australians among those detained by Israel.
A spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said on Wednesday the government wanted to "see all detained Australians released as soon as possible".
"The Australian government is engaging with Israeli authorities on the welfare of detained Australians involved in the flotilla and making preparations to visit them at the earliest opportunity,"they said.
"Australian officials continue to make clear to Israel our expectation that any detainees receive humane treatment in line with international norms."
DFAT has repeatedly warned Australians against joining efforts to break Israel's naval blockade of Gaza.
Video from the flotilla's live stream showed Israeli troops firing at two of the boats on Tuesday. The type of ammunition fired was not clear.
"At no point was live ammunition fired," the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement.
"Following multiple warnings, non-lethal means were employed toward the vessels — not toward protesters — as a warning. No protesters were injured during these events."
The Global Sumud Flotilla later said that all 50 boats in the flotilla had been intercepted in the eastern Mediterranean, with 428 participants from more than 40 countries detained.
Israel's foreign ministry said on X on Monday that it would "not allow any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza".
Organisers said on Tuesday those taken from the boats were "unaccounted-for" after being "forcibly transported" to an Israeli port.
Israeli soldiers are seen on a vessel bearing symbols of the Global Sumud Flotilla, as it is brought into the port in Ashdod in southern Israel on Tuesday. (Reuters: Amir Cohen)
Australians among those detained
The 11 Australians among those detained by Israel are Anny Mokotow, Bianca Webb-Pullman, Neve O'Connor, Violet Coco, Gemma O'Toole, Sam Woripa Watson, Zack Schofield, Helen O'Sullivan, Juliet Lamont, Isla Lamont and Surya McEwan, organisers say.
Their families and friends have raised fears for their safety, saying they do not have any information on their whereabouts.
Chris O'Connor, Neve's father, said his daughter was on "an unarmed humanitarian mission to deliver life-saving aid".
Australians Sam Woripa Watson (left) and Anny Mokotow (middle) who are crew members of the flotilla. (Supplied: Global Sumud Flotilla)
He said her detainment 1,200 kilometres from Gaza "shows the lengths Israel will go to prevent food and medicine reaching Gaza's starving people".
Sam Woripa Watson, a Wangerriburrah and Birri Gubba man, is also among those detained.
Chelsea Watego, co-director of the Institute of Collaborative Race Research, said there were "risks on his life and safety".
"We know about the violence visited upon the bodies of those on the front line. We know what Sam is doing is right. We know what he is fighting for is a just cause," she told Black Witness.
Sam Woripa Watson is among 11 Australians detained by Israel. (Supplied: Black Witness)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday condemned the intervention against the "voyagers of hope" in the flotilla and called on the international community to act against Israel's actions.
Ships from the Global Sumud Flotilla had set sail for a third time on Thursday from southern Türkiye, after earlier attempts to deliver aid to Gaza were intercepted by Israel in international waters.
The group said previously there were 426 people taking part in the flotilla from 39 countries.
An Israeli vessel approaches the flotilla. (Supplied: Global Sumud Flotilla)
The United States Treasury said on Tuesday it was imposing sanctions against four people associated with what it described as the "pro-Hamas" flotilla.
Pro-Palestinian activists say Israel and the US wrongly conflate their advocacy for Palestinian rights with support for Hamas extremists.
Palestinians and international aid bodies say supplies reaching Gaza are still insufficient, despite a ceasefire agreed in October that included guarantees of increased aid.
Most of Gaza's more than 2 million people have been displaced, many now living in bombed-out homes and makeshift tents pitched on open ground, roadsides, or atop the ruins of destroyed buildings.
Israel, which controls all access to the Gaza Strip, denies withholding supplies for its residents.
ABC/Reuters
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