“We are members of the Israel Defense Forces. We do not want to hurt you. Do as we say and you will not be harmed.”
With those words, the notorious Shayetet 13 Naval Commando unit, in full US-taxpayer-funded special-forces regalia, boarded the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) mother ship, Alma, at 8.30pm Gaza time on October 1st, when we were 15 hours from the coast.
The IDF soldiers who thundered on board were met with the quiet, calm determination of the 29 volunteers on the Alma – aged from 22 to 74, and representing 22 countries. We were ordered to kneel on the deck, and taken one by one to be searched in the darkness.
The flotilla of 41 vessels was transporting humanitarian supplies to Gaza and drawing attention to the ongoing genocide. This was my third attempt to sail with aid to alleviate suffering, break the siege and fuel some hope: in May, I was with the vessel Conscience, which was struck by what has since been confirmed by Israel as its drones off Malta.
These were the elites of the IDF, yet they were people too, some of whom tried to
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