<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned the Israeli Chargé d'Affaires in Spain, Dana Erlich, to convey the government's condemnation of the interception of the Flotilla and the detention of several Spaniards traveling aboard this humanitarian mission to Gaza.</strong></h4> This was announced Thursday by the minister, José Manuel Albares, in an interview with TVE's "La Hora de la 1". The purpose of this summons is to convey the government's protest and to demand that Israel respect the rights of the detained Spaniards "at all times." "They must be freed and returned to Spain immediately. They are peaceful citizens who had a humanitarian purpose," he warned. "They did not represent any threat nor did they have any intention of harassing or carrying out any type of illegal action, and therefore, I understand that they should not be accused of anything at all," Albares stated. “They are peaceful citizens who were exercising a right, which is a humanitarian right, in international waters. They pose no threat to anyone. I insist, they were in international waters,” he stated. Therefore, he warned, “I will not accept any unjust and unfounded accusations against them.” The detained Spaniards, Albares assured, enjoy the “full diplomatic protection” of the Ministry and, at this time, “the urgent thing is for them to regain their freedom and return to Spain immediately.” According to Albares, the Foreign Office does not currently have specific data on the number of Spaniards detained—a total of 65 Spaniards were on the flotilla—but he does know that a group has already arrived at the port. The Spanish consul in Tel Aviv, the chargé d'affaires of the Spanish Embassy, and several Civil Guard officers have already arrived at the location to provide them with consular assistance, he reported. Among those arrested are, in addition to Ada Colau, a Compromís MP and two Podemos leaders. <h5><strong>Israel: "All passengers are safe and will be deported to Europe"</strong></h5> For its part, the Israeli Foreign Ministry assured this Thursday that none of the ships comprising the Global Sumud Flotilla have managed to breach the "naval blockade" and that the "provocation has ended." "All passengers are safe and in good health. We are transferring them to Israel, from where they will be deported to Europe," the Ministry stated in a message on social media, in which it again referred to the flotilla's ships as "yachts" and linked its members to Hamas. The army has begun transferring the detainees to the port of Ashdod, a step prior to their arrest and subsequent deportation. According to the government, there is still "one last ship from this provocation," but none have approached the so-called "active combat zone" and, if they do, they will be intercepted like the rest of the flotilla members.
