Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and head of Women Journalists Without Chains (WJWC), Tawakkol Karman, has strongly condemned Israel’s assault on the Global Freedom Flotilla, describing it as a “flagrant crime” and a blatant violation of international law.

She said the attack on civilian vessels carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza is both a crime against the activists involved and a crime against humanity, adding that it further exposes the aggressive and repressive nature of the Israeli occupation.

Karman called on the United Nations and the international community to take urgent action to hold Israel accountable before the International Criminal Court, to end what she described as Israel’s policy of impunity, and to immediately lift the blockade on Gaza to ensure the free flow of humanitarian aid.

Here is the full text:

With deep outrage and indignation, I unequivocally denounce the blatant Israeli assault on the Global Freedom Flotilla—an entirely civilian and humanitarian mission carrying nothing but aid and a message of solidarity with the besieged Palestinian people in Gaza.

This attack is not only a crime against the civilian activists who carried food and medicine, but also a crime against humanity and a flagrant violation of international law and the very principles of justice and peace

Israel’s seizure of the ships follows weeks of public threats by Israeli officials against the flotilla and its participants, coupled with repeated attempts to sabotage the vessels and block them from reaching their destination.

The Israeli act of piracy against the Freedom Flotilla is a fully-fledged crime that adds to the long record of Israeli violations against the Palestinian people. Intercepting civilian ships carrying humanitarian aid in international waters is a brazen breach of international law and a stain on the conscience of a silent world.

This act of piracy will not silence the voice of solidarity; it will only strengthen the resolve of free people everywhere to confront the occupation and expose its crimes.

The targeting of peaceful activists seeking to break the unjust blockade on Gaza once again exposes the true nature of the Israeli occupation—one defined by aggression, repression, and systematic violations of the most basic human rights

I call on the international community and the United Nations to take urgent and decisive action to end Israel’s policy of impunity, to hold those responsible accountable before the International Criminal Court, and to work without delay to lift the unjust blockade on Gaza and guarantee the unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid.

Today, more than ever, the peoples of the world and all forces of conscience are called to stand united with the victims and with the just cause of the Palestinian people, and to persist in the peaceful struggle until they attain their legitimate rights to freedom, dignity, and independence.

Tawakkol Karman
Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
Head of Women Journalists Without Chains