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To: The International Maritime Organization (IMO), the United Nations Secretary-General, the UN Human Rights Council, the European Union, and all Governments whose nationals are aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla

We, the undersigned, urgently call on the international community to condemn and respond to the ongoing illegal military interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), a humanitarian organization whose unarmed civilian fleet is operating peacefully in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea.

Who Is the Global Sumud Flotilla?
The Global Sumud Flotilla is a humanitarian organization composed of civilian volunteers, human rights advocates, medical personnel, and elected officials from dozens of countries. Its mission is to peacefully challenge the blockade of Gaza and deliver essential humanitarian aid — including food, medicine, and medical supplies — to a civilian population facing a catastrophic humanitarian crisis. The GSF’s mission is non-violent, civilian in nature, and consistent with the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.

https://globalsumudflotilla.org

What Has Happened
On May 18, 2026, Israeli naval forces — acting under direct authorization from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — launched a military boarding operation against the Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters, hundreds of miles from Israeli territory. Following a security meeting held by Prime Minister Netanyahu to authorize the seizure, Shayetet 13 naval commandos led the boarding operation, using a specially constructed floating detention facility prepared to hold activists. Live broadcasts from the flotilla showed armed Israeli naval forces boarding the boats one after another. The GSF confirmed that military vessels intercepted their fleet and that Israeli Occupation Forces boarded vessels in broad daylight. The flotilla demanded safe passage for their legal, non-violent humanitarian mission.

This is not an isolated event. In October 2025, the Israeli military intercepted approximately 40 boats from the Global Sumud Flotilla, arresting more than 450 participants, with detained activists alleging physical and psychological abuse while in Israeli custody.

Violations of International Law
The actions carried out by Israeli naval forces today constitute multiple, serious violations of binding international law:

1. Violation of UNCLOS — Unlawful Boarding in International Waters (Article 110) 
   
   Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the right of visit — the authority to board a foreign vessel on the high seas — is strictly limited. Article 110 permits warships to board foreign vessels only in cases of piracy, slave trading, unauthorized broadcasting, statelessness, or where the vessel flies the same flag as the warship. The GSF vessels are civilian craft engaged in a humanitarian mission. None of the exceptions under Article 110 apply. Israel did not obtain authorization from the flag states of the vessels boarded. This boarding is therefore a direct violation of UNCLOS and the principle of freedom of the high seas enshrined in Article 87.
   
   
2. Violation of SOLAS and the GMDSS — Jamming of Distress Frequencies
   
   Israeli forces deployed communications jamming technology during the interception, severing the flotilla’s ability to coordinate or call for help. Channel 16 (156.8 MHz) is the internationally designated distress, safety, and calling frequency under the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS), as established by the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). After a MAYDAY message is broadcast, VHF Channel 16 must be kept free of all traffic other than those directly involved in the rescue situation. Deliberately jamming or spamming Channel 16 — including with music or noise — constitutes a direct, life-threatening violation of SOLAS obligations. SOLAS 1974 has 167 contracting states. Israel has been a member state of the IMO since 1952 and is bound by these obligations. Jamming maritime distress frequencies does not merely impede communication — it places every person aboard those vessels in mortal danger by denying them the ability to call for emergency assistance. This is among the most serious violations of maritime safety law that can be committed.
   
   
3. Violation of the UN Charter — Threat and Use of Force (Article 2(4))
   
   The United Nations Charter prohibits the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, and more broadly against persons conducting peaceful civilian activities. GSF boats were approached by military speedboats, with armed personnel pointing lasers and semiautomatic assault weapons, ordering participants to the front of the boats and to get on their hands and knees. This constitutes the use of armed force against unarmed civilians engaged in a lawful humanitarian activity.
4. Violations of International Humanitarian Law — Treatment of Detained Civilians
   
   Multiple flotilla participants were injured during the interception, and several have come forward to report incidents of sexual assault. Participants were forcibly taken to Israel where they faced terrorism charges and reported being beaten and tortured while in detention. Amnesty International has documented ill-treatment and abuse of activists from prior interceptions, including sleep deprivation, denial of drinking water, and denial of medical care. The torture of detainees violates the UN Convention Against Torture, the Geneva Conventions, and fundamental norms of customary international law.
   
   
5. Obstruction of Humanitarian Aid
   
   The deliberate, repeated military interdiction of unarmed civilian vessels carrying food, medicine, and humanitarian supplies destined for a population facing documented famine conditions constitutes a grave violation of international humanitarian law, including Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and customary rules prohibiting the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare.

We Demand

1. The immediate and unconditional release of all GSF participants detained or held aboard Israeli vessels.
2. A formal IMO investigation into the jamming of GMDSS distress frequencies (Channel 16) by Israeli naval forces, and the application of all appropriate consequences under SOLAS.
3. A formal UN investigation into the boarding of civilian vessels in international waters without flag state consent, in violation of UNCLOS.
4. All flag states of boarded vessels to formally protest these boardings and demand accountability through the IMO and international legal mechanisms.
5. All governments with detained nationals to immediately invoke their full consular rights and pursue accountability at the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court.
6. The international community to recognize that the extension of military force hundreds of miles into the Mediterranean against unarmed civilian humanitarians is a threat to the freedom of the seas that endangers every nation.

Who are we?

We, the friends, family, and global community of supporters of those aboard the Sailing Vessel Peluxo and the other vessels in the Global Sumud Flotilla, write in solidarity with our friend who went to sea as a humanitarian volunteer, carrying hope and aid to a besieged population. They — and every person on that flotilla — deserve the full protection of international law. Please join us in continuing their mission of supporting a free Palestine. We will not be silent. 

The law is clear. The violations are documented. The world must act.

Signed, with heart and purpose,

Name: 

Organization (if applicable): 

Country:

Date: