They recorded video statements anticipating this exact moment
The Handala was stopped 74km from Gaza's coast while attempting to break Israel's blockade with humanitarian supplies including formula, medicine, and food for Palestinians. Detainees reported violence and abuse; two Spanish activists face deportation despite refusing to sign deportation papers. Spain formally protested to Israel's embassy.
- Israeli Navy intercepted the Handala 74 kilometers from Gaza in international waters on Saturday, July 27
- 21 activists from 12 countries aboard; 14 detained, including Spanish citizens Sergio Toribio and Santiago González Vallejo
- Ship carried formula, medicine, food, and diapers; detainees reported physical and verbal violence and launched indefinite hunger strike
- Second Freedom Flotilla interception in two months; Spain formally protested to Israeli embassy
Israel's Navy intercepted the Handala, a humanitarian aid ship carrying 21 activists from 12 countries, in international waters en route to Gaza. The 14 detainees, including two Spanish citizens, report physical and verbal abuse and are being deported.
On Saturday, Israeli naval forces intercepted the Handala, a cargo ship carrying humanitarian supplies bound for Gaza, in international waters roughly 74 kilometers from the Palestinian coast. The vessel had departed from Syracuse, Italy, on July 13 as part of the Freedom Flotilla—a recurring effort to breach Israel's maritime blockade and deliver food, medicine, infant formula, and diapers to a population facing what organizers describe as an unprecedented famine. Among the 21 activists aboard were two Spanish citizens: Sergio Toribio, a 49-year-old mechanic from Logroño, and Santiago González Vallejo, a retired economist and union organizer who helped found the Committee of Solidarity with the Arab Cause. The crew also included journalists from Al Jazeera—Moroccan reporter Mohamed El Bakkali and Iraqi-American cameraman Waad Al Musa—along with activists from ten other nations.
Israel's Foreign Ministry announced the interception as a prevention of illegal entry into Gaza's maritime zone, but the Freedom Flotilla and its supporters dispute this characterization entirely. The ship was stopped at 40 nautical miles from the coast, well beyond Israeli territorial waters, making the boarding what organizers call a seizure rather than a lawful enforcement action. All 21 crew members had recorded video statements before departure, anticipating exactly this scenario and requesting their release should they be intercepted by Israeli military or allied forces.
Once detained, the activists were transported to Givon prison in Israel. On Monday, they appeared before an immigration tribunal where fourteen of them faced potential deportation. Twelve refused to sign deportation papers, but by day's end, many had been expelled from the country anyway. The two Al Jazeera journalists signed their deportation documents and left. Two other detainees—French national Ange Sahuquet and Franco-American Frank Romano—remained in custody with limited contact from their legal representatives at Adalah, an Arab-Israeli human rights organization.
All those detained reported physical and verbal violence to the immigration court. According to Adalah's legal team, several testified to being subjected to physical assault and verbal abuse, while others described mistreatment and poor detention conditions. The detainees launched an indefinite hunger strike to protest what they characterized as unlawful imprisonment. Two Israeli-American activists aboard—Bob Suberi and Huwaida Arraf—were transferred to police custody rather than facing deportation, since their Israeli citizenship meant they could not be expelled as foreign nationals could be.
Toribio and González Vallejo also refused to sign deportation papers but were eventually deported after their court appearance. Spain's Foreign Ministry moved swiftly, summoning Dan Poraz, the Israeli embassy's charge d'affaires, to lodge an official protest. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares stated that the government had conveyed its "rejection" of the detentions and demanded immediate release. He confirmed that Spain's consulate had visited both men in custody as soon as they reached Israeli soil. The two Spaniards' families, meanwhile, grew increasingly anxious about their treatment. Toribio's sister Raquel expressed particular concern, noting that her family was "nervous and worried," especially given the lack of information. She recalled that when Toribio was detained aboard the Madleen—another Freedom Flotilla vessel intercepted on June 9—he had been released and returned to Spain the next day. That earlier incident had also involved the detention of climate activist Greta Thunberg and had drawn international attention to conditions in Israeli detention facilities, where several activists reported insect infestations and poor sanitation.
Spain's political left responded sharply to the Handala's interception. Sumar's culture minister and spokesman Ernest Urtasun called for immediate release and demanded sanctions against Israeli political leaders "subjecting the Palestinian people to starvation." Podemos leader Ione Belarra condemned the silence of those who say nothing in the face of what she termed Palestinian genocide and deliberately imposed famine, writing on social media: "Shame on those who remain silent." The incident underscores a pattern: two Freedom Flotilla ships intercepted in two months, both carrying activists determined to challenge a blockade that humanitarian organizations say has created catastrophic conditions in Gaza, and both resulting in detention, reported abuse, and international diplomatic friction.
Notable Quotes
Our consulate was able to meet with them in person as soon as they were detained and reached land— Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, confirming contact with the two detained Spanish activists
Shame on those who remain silent— Podemos leader Ione Belarra, condemning international silence on the detention and Gaza blockade
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Israel say it stopped the ship if it was in international waters?
Israel frames it as preventing illegal entry into Gaza's maritime zone—a security argument. But the activists were stopped 74 kilometers out, well beyond Israeli territorial waters. That's the legal crux. Israel says it's enforcing a blockade; the flotilla says it's seizure on the high seas.
What's the pattern here? This is the second ship in two months.
June's Madleen, now July's Handala. Both Freedom Flotilla vessels, both intercepted, both crews detained and reported abuse. It suggests a consistent enforcement posture—Israel isn't allowing these attempts to break the blockade, and it's willing to detain foreign nationals to stop them.
The Spanish activists—why does their detention matter diplomatically?
Spain has formal diplomatic channels and consular obligations. When its citizens are detained abroad, the government has to respond. Summoning the Israeli embassy charge d'affaires is a formal protest. It raises the incident from a maritime enforcement question to a state-to-state dispute.
The hunger strike—is that a negotiating tactic or genuine protest?
It's both. It's a statement that they view their detention as illegitimate. But it's also leverage. Hunger strikes draw attention, create urgency, complicate detention logistics. It signals they won't accept the detention quietly.
What happens to the humanitarian cargo?
It doesn't reach Gaza. That's the point of the interception. The ship never delivers the formula, medicine, food. The blockade holds. The flotilla's mission fails, and the people they were trying to reach don't get the supplies.
Will there be consequences for Israel?
Diplomatically, Spain protested. The left in Spanish politics condemned it. But consequences? That depends on whether other governments escalate beyond statements. So far, it's been formal objections and political rhetoric.