FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2025
Media Contact: Melissa Garriga | [email protected]
CODEPINK Condemns Israel's Unlawful Attack on the Global Sumud Flotilla and Demands Immediate Release of Detained Humanitarians
CODEPINK condemns the Israeli government's brutal and illegal military assault on the unarmed humanitarian aid Global Sumud Flotilla and the abduction of the unarmed volunteers aboard. A few days ago, the Israeli military allegedly violently attacked some of the vessels several times with drones, flashbang grenades, and chemical agents. Today, while the flotilla was hours away from the shores of Gaza, in an attempt to deliver necessary life-saving aid, Israel’s military encircled the vessels, assaulted them with water grenades, and then began abducting those aboard. Among those aboard the flotilla are our friends and valued co-organizers, brothers Adnaan and Tor Stumo. We hold the Israeli government fully responsible for the safety and well-being of them and every individual illegally detained, as well as U.S. government officials who enable Israel’s actions.
Israel intercepted the flotilla under the pretense that the boats were breaking what they said was a “lawful blockade.” The blockade has never been legal: not since October 7th, and certainly not for the decades it has been illegally imposed long before October 7th.
Before the assault, Israel attempted to frame these humanitarians and activists as security threats. We ask the world: Is it an act of terrorism to sail ships laden with life-saving aid to a population facing engineered famine? Is it terrorism to challenge an illegal blockade and attempt to open a humanitarian corridor for besieged people? The true violence is the one being inflicted on the 2.3 million people of Gaza, who are being starved and slaughtered with impunity.
We demand:
- The immediate and safe passage of the flotilla's aid to the starving people of Gaza.
- The immediate and unconditional release of all flotilla participants who end up abducted by the Israeli military
- Real consequences, such as an arms embargo and sanctions, on the Israeli government until it ends the genocide in Gaza and the occupation of Palestine.
The volunteers aboard the Sumud Flotilla are undertaking a moral call that international institutions have catastrophically failed to fulfill. As the death toll in Gaza climbs into the hundreds of thousands, with a majority being women and children, global institutions like the United Nations have watched, deliberated, and failed to act decisively. In this vacuum, ordinary people of conscience have stepped forward. Their mission is not a provocation, but a peaceful and humane attempt to stop a genocide that the world is witnessing in real time.
The targeting of this peaceful flotilla has further exposed Israel’s contempt for international law and its determination to silence any effort to break the siege of Gaza. The world is watching. We stand in solidarity with the brave members of the Sumud Flotilla and with the Palestinian people.
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