'Useless flotilla!' - Meloni says Gaza-bound mission creates 'more problems' than 'benefit' to Palestinians

"Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday dismissed the Gaza-bound flotilla as 'useless,' saying it brought no real benefit to Palestinians and only created more problems. "Ss for my view of the flotilla, I have not changed my mind much. I still fail to see its usefulness. These initiatives bring no benefit to the people of Gaza, but they do create much more work and many more problems for us to solve - as if we did not already have enough," she commented. Meloni said the Italian government was in contact with Israeli officials over the detained activists and publicly raised concerns about the incident. "We publicly condemned the incident, including with our Israeli counterparts, with whom there have been many contacts today. The Israeli foreign minister has announced that, in the coming hours, all those involved will be disembarked on a Greek island. That is clearly a positive development," she said. Asked whether Italy could send navy ships to escort the remaining flotilla vessels, Meloni said she 'had not yet considered' the move and would discuss it with the relevant minister. This comes after the Israeli Navy's interception of at least 22 flotilla vessels, with at least 179 activists 'kidnapped' at the time of publication, according to the Global Sumud Flotilla. The Israeli Foreign Ministry reported approximately 175 activists from more than 20 boats were making their way to Israel. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said the activists would subsequently be taken to Greece. The ministry also released a video of 'condoms and drugs' allegedly found on one of the intercepted vessels. Israeli Permanent Representative to the United Nations Danny Danon welcomed the operation, praising the actions of the military personnel. The Global Sumud Flotilla set sail from Barcelona on April 12 with over 70 vessels and 1,000 participants from more than 70 countries. It marks the latest activist-led attempt to break the blockade, after a similar flotilla was intercepted by the Israeli Navy in October 2025."

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