Five Europeans detained by the Israeli navy for participating in a Gaza-bound flotilla were released on Monday and are now en route to Greece, according to Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot.
The group, comprising four Belgians and one Luxembourger, was aboard the Global Sumud flotilla, which sought to break the maritime blockade on Gaza.
They were detained last week in international waters by the Israeli navy and subsequently taken to a detention centre.
The Israeli authorities deported numerous foreign participants in the flotilla, including the five Europeans, most of whom were expelled on Monday.
Three of the detained Belgians – Alexis Deswaef, a lawyer; Latifa Gharbaoui, a pro-Palestinian activist; and Saddie Choua, a visual arts teacher – had gone on hunger strike to protest their detention conditions.
"Thanks to the efforts of Belgian Foreign Affairs, our four Belgian compatriots and the Luxembourger from the Global Sumud flotilla arrested by Israel are now free and on their way to Europe, specifically to Greece," stated Prévot on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
"I express my gratitude to the Greek authorities for their cooperation and am relieved they can safely reunite with their families," the minister added.
Belgian diplomatic services remain in contact with the detainees’ families and Luxembourg authorities to coordinate their return to Brussels.
Israel announced on Monday that it had expelled 171 additional activists from the Gaza Flotilla, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
"171 additional provocateurs from the flotilla [...], including Greta Thunberg, have been expelled from Israel to Greece and Slovakia," read th Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on the platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
Accompanying the statement were photos of Thunberg and two other women at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv. They were dressed in the standard grey tracksuits used in Israeli prisons.
