Israel must allow life-saving aid into Gaza “through all means,” the UN human rights office has urged, stressing that international law “does not allow interception of foreign civilian vessels” on the high seas as Israeli forces seized yet another flotilla travelling through international waters.
“This is not the first time Israel intercepts unarmed civilian vessels sailing toward Gaza, in international waters,” spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told Anadolu in a statement on Friday.
“International law provides for the freedom of navigation on the high seas and does not allow for the interception of foreign civilian vessels in all but a very limited set of circumstances,” he said.
He called on Israel to ensure that the treatment and detention conditions for those in custody, as well as any use of force, “fully conform with international law.” Al-Kheetan also urged Israel to respect due process guarantees, including the right to challenge the legality of detention.
The spokesperson reiterated Israel’s obligations as an occupying power.
“As the occupying power, Israel must ensure food, medical supplies and other supplies essential to the survival of the civilian population to the fullest extent of the means available to it, and to agree and facilitate the entry of impartial humanitarian relief, delivered rapidly and without hindrance,” he said, referring to orders by the International Court of Justice.
He urged Israel to “urgently lift the blockade on Gaza and allow the entry of life-saving material through all means possible.”
