In the early morning hours of July 27, Israeli forces intercepted the Handala, a small civilian boat carrying humanitarian aid sailing to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza. This latest mission of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition was undertaken “for the children of Gaza”.
‘Handala’ is the name of a cartoon child created by Palestinian animator Naji al-Ali in 1969, symbolizing resistance to Israel’s military occupation. The vessel was carrying a small cargo of aid, including medical supplies, diapers, baby formula, and stuffed animals. Canadian physician Dr. Yipeng Ge, who has provided volunteer medical care in Gaza, joined the mission between ports in Italy and delivered a donation of children’s prostheses from the Canadian non-profit Universal Limbs.
The Handala livestreamed its journey up to and including capture. In the hours before interception, Israeli military vessels and buzzing drones followed the ship. The captain repeatedly tried to contact the Israeli military but received no response. Eventually the ship, its passengers and cargo were seized approximately 90 kilometres from Gaza’s shores in international waters.
Israel forcibly took all 21 volunteers into Israel. The activists represent a range of nationalities, and include American labour activist Christian Smalls and French member of parliament Gabrielle Cathala. Volunteers who refused to sign deportation documents stating that they attempted to enter Israel illegally were held for several days at Givon Prison on hunger strike before being deported. Several report severe physical abuse and deplorable detention conditions, including lack of ventilation and extreme heat. Smalls, who co-founded the Amazon Labor Union, was choked and kicked by Israeli officials.
This latest attack on international humanitarian activists comes just weeks after Israel attacked the Madleen, which was carrying climate activist Greta Thunberg. Many activists from the Madleen were detained in similarly poor conditions for several days, including some in solitary confinement.
As we argued in June, Israel’s attacks on these aid missions violate international law, including by constituting attacks on civilians and false imprisonment. Israel argues it is enforcing a lawful blockade. However, a blockade that disproportionately impacts civilians as part of a plan to use starvation as a method of warfare has no plausible claim to legality.
Israel has used economic warfare to collectively punish civilians in Gaza since 2007. In response to Hamas’ rise to power, Israel cancelled the customs code for Gaza, making exports of Palestinian products and imports of all non-humanitarian goods virtually impossible. After October 2023, Israel combined its aerial bombardment and military ground operations in Gaza with a dramatic tightening of the entry and distribution of aid. Since March 2, virtually no aid has entered Gaza apart from meagre rations administered by the joint U.S.-Israel Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The GHF has been widely criticized for its role in concentrating civilians in southern Gaza ahead of Israel’s plan to move them into an internment camp where, it is feared, they will face starvation and forcible deportation. Over 1,373 Palestinian aid seekers have been killed by the IDF and private contractors, including 859 at or near GHF sites and many thousands more wounded. An investigation by Israeli newspaper Haaretz found that IDF soldiers are systematically ordered to shoot Palestinians in GHF ‘death traps’. On July 29, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) issued an alert that the “worst-case scenario” of famine is currently unfolding in Gaza.
In July 2024 the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory since 1967 to be unlawful. Israel is therefore legally obligated to end the occupation “as rapidly as possible.” All states, including Canada, are under a positive legal obligation to take action to end the occupation, to protect the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to ensure Israel’s compliance with international humanitarian law.
On July 24 Prime Minister Carney stated that “Canada condemns the Israeli government’s failure to prevent the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian disaster in Gaza.”
Under international law Canada is obligated to take reasonable measures to prevent genocide and otherwise ensure that Israel’s crimes against Palestinians are brought to an end. The government of Canada must finally take meaningful actions to facilitate the unrestricted flow of humanitarian aid and access by the United Nations and other humanitarian organizations.
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