Gaza flotilla organizers say 211 activists 'kidnapped' by Israel

Israel's foreign ministry said Thursday that Israeli forces had arrested about 175 activists aboard 20 ships from an aid-laden flotilla bound for Gaza.

"Approximately 175 activists from more than 20 boats... are now making their way peacefully to Israel," the ministry said in a statement, including a video of the activists aboard an Israeli navy ship.

Israel controls all entry points to Gaza, and has been accused by the United Nations and foreign NGOs of strangling the flow of goods into the territory, causing shortages since the start of the war in October 2023.

Organizers of the Gaza-bound aid flotilla said Israel's army had "kidnapped" 211 activists including a Paris city councilor in a raid in international waters off Greece.

Helene Coron, a spokesperson for the Global Sumud France, told an online news conference that the operation had taken place near the island of Crete, at an "unprecedented" distance from Israel.