L’Italia invia la seconda nave della Marina a Escort Gaza Aid Flottilla

ROME, Sept 25 (Reuters) – Italy has sent a second navy ship in support of the international aid flotilla that has come under drone attack while trying to deliver aid to Gaza, Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said on Thursday.

The Global Sumud Flotilla is using about 50 civilian boats to try and break Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza. Many lawyers and activists, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, are on board.

“We have sent one ship and another is on its way, ready for any eventuality,” Crosetto said in a speech to the lower house of parliament.

Italy sent a first frigate on Wednesday, hours after the GSF said it was targeted by drones that dropped stun grenades and itching powder, in international waters 30 nautical miles (56 km) off the Greek island of Gavdos.

The GSF blamed Israel for the attack.
The Israeli foreign ministry did not respond directly to the accusation, but repeated an invitation for the flotilla to drop humanitarian aid in an Israeli port, leaving it to Israeli authorities to take it to Gaza, or else face consequences.

Spain has also decided to send a military warship to protect the flotilla.

Crosetto warned the activists against insisting on trying to break the Israeli blockade, and urged them to accept an Italian proposal to hand over their aid supplies and allow them to be distributed in Gaza by the local Catholic Church.

“We cannot guarantee the safety of our fellow citizens if they enter the territorial waters of other countries,” Crosetto said.

The GSF said early on Thursday that its vessels were sailing at slow speed in Greek territorial waters, had been subjected to “moderate drone activity” during the night, and were heading towards international waters “later today”.

Interestingly, Spain explicitly refused to take part in the maritime mission guarding commercial ships around Yemen from attacks from the houthis and the houthis explicitly praised Spain for it.

But when there is an islamist PR operation, Spain is ready to jump in with its navy.

Let them in then, let Hamas take them, then let their respective governments and families to deal with that. 

Maybe once they see what kind of “thank you” they’d get, maybe then the few neurons they share together would start working.

Edit: misspelling 

Honestly, posturing. As long as Europe maintains rational trade relations it’s a good thing that those ships are sailing, even if that’s just a drop in a sea of needs for this region (Gaza needs thousands of tones of food daily, not 13 thousand tonnes on CONSCIENCE, the biggest in the flotilla, every 4 weeks). I just don’t want my friend who depends on Israeli-made medicine to die

Is the flotilla really 3 sail boats, like the picture would have us believe?

Shame Italy does nothing to aid Cyprus which is also under brutal foreign occupation.

Well done, but we aim to stop this genocide by cutting all ties with Israel and we will achieve this one strike at a time. From Spain, people all over, liberals and right-wingers, apathetic losers, criticizing us for stopping “la vuelta” and blocking the streets, and yet we caught attention and we achieved something…now we have a warship in the sea, as the world watches.

Our countries are sending ships because the people in the streets, social movements are threatening with increasing actions at home.

These are not acts of charity by benevolent EU leaders.

This is pressure put up by the people, against the genocidal state of Israel and we will continue – from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.

Just watch.

I am sure Benito Mussolini would be proud of Italy.