Turkey on Monday condemned Israel’s interception of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that sailed from southwestern Turkey last week, calling it a “new act of piracy” amid worsening relations between Ankara and Tel Aviv over the war in Gaza.
Israeli forces began intercepting vessels belonging to the Global Sumud Flotilla west of Cyprus on Monday, according to the group, in the latest attempt by activists to breach Israel’s blockade of the Palestinian territory and deliver aid by sea.
“Global Sumud Flotilla is under attack!” the group said on X, adding that four Israeli warships had approached its vessels and that Israeli forces were boarding one of the boats “in broad daylight.”
A website tracking the flotilla’s location showed several vessels being intercepted west of Cyprus.
Ankara strongly criticized the Israeli operation, saying it was a “new act of piracy” targeting a civilian humanitarian mission.
“We condemn the intervention by Israeli forces in international waters against the Global Flotilla, which constitutes a new act of piracy,” the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement.
Küresel Sumud Filosu’na İsrail Güçlerince Yapılan Müdahale Hk. https://t.co/zCGELqBSrR pic.twitter.com/b5Lxw92FRq
— T.C. Dışişleri Bakanlığı (@TC_Disisleri) May 18, 2026
Relations between Turkey and Israel have deteriorated sharply since the start of the Gaza war, with the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan repeatedly accusing Israel of committing atrocities in the Palestinian enclave.
Around 50 ships departed from southwestern Turkey on Thursday as part of the flotilla.
Görkem Duru, a member of the Turkey branch of the Global Sumud Flotilla who was not on board, told Agence France-Presse that at least two or three boats had been stopped.
“But some of them continue” toward Gaza, Duru said, adding that communication links with the ships had been cut off.
Turkish activists aboard the vessels said they would not resist Israeli forces. Suayb Ordu, speaking to Turkish broadcaster NTV from one of the boats, said the activists had “no choice but to raise our hands and surrender peacefully without offering any resistance.”
“We are not going there to fight or commit acts of violence; we are trying to prove the opposite to the world,” he said.
Another activist, Ömer Aslan, told Turkey’s TRT television that armed Israeli soldiers carrying “long-barrelled weapons” would not deter the group from challenging the blockade.
“Israel’s attacks with these warships do not scare us. We will strive to break [the blockade],” he said.
Israel did not immediately confirm the interception but had earlier vowed to prevent the convoy from reaching Gaza.
“Once again, a provocation for the sake of provocation: another so-called ‘humanitarian aid flotilla’ with no humanitarian aid,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry said on X.
The ministry accused two Turkish groups, Mavi Marmara and the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) of involvement in the flotilla, calling the IHH a terrorist organization and saying the flotilla served the interests of Hamas.
Israel said the flotilla was intended to “divert attention from Hamas’s refusal to disarm” and obstruct progress on a ceasefire plan proposed by US President Donald Trump, which took effect in October and calls for the demilitarization of Gaza, including the disarmament of Hamas.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry also denied claims that Gaza was facing shortages, saying more than 1.58 million tons of humanitarian aid and thousands of tons of medical supplies had entered the territory since October.
Israel controls all entry points into Gaza, which has been under an Israeli blockade since 2007. During the war triggered by Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, Gaza has suffered severe shortages of food, medicine and other essential supplies, with Israel at times halting aid deliveries entirely.
A previous flotilla attempt was intercepted last month in international waters off Greece. Most activists were expelled to Europe, while two, Spanish national of Palestinian origin Saif Abu Keshek and Brazilian activist Thiago Avila, were taken to Israel for questioning before being deported several days later.
Rights groups said the arrests were illegal and alleged the two men were abused in Israeli detention. Israeli authorities denied the abuse allegations and filed no charges against them.
© Agence France-Presse