Fourteen Irish nationals aboard a Gaza-bound vessel intercepted by the Israeli navy yesterday face a deportation hearing today.
They are part of a group of 27 peace activists, from seven countries, who are being held at the Givon Detention Centre after undergoing security checks at Ashdod port. They can be held for 72 hours before being deported.
Israeli authorities said anyone who refuses to leave the country voluntarily would have access to a lawyer and 72 hours to appeal being sent home.
The Irish embassy was in contact with the Israeli authorities yesterday over the welfare of the Irish nationals and was assured all of them were safe.
Some Irish activists expressed concern the Israeli authorities might confiscate their personal belongings. Activists on previous flotillas complained laptop computers and mobile phones were not returned.
The Israeli military said no one was hurt when naval commandos boarded the Irish MV Saoirse and the Canadian vessel MV Al-Tahrir after the captains refused repeated requests to turn around.
A military spokesman said the boats were in international waters in the Mediterranean when they were stopped, between 40 and 60 miles from the coast.
The Israeli military issued a short video clip showing a naval official calling on the ships to turn around. “Your attempt to enter the Gaza Strip by sea is a violation of international law.
“We remind you that humanitarian supplies can be delivered to the Gaza Strip by land, and you are welcome to enter Ashdod port and deliver supplies through land crossings”, the navy officer said.
Satellite phone links were blocked shortly before the maritime interception.
Activists from Gaza who helped co-ordinate the flotilla called the Israeli action illegal and called for the immediate release of all those arrested.
Israel imposed a maritime blockade on the Gaza strip in 2007 after Hamas came to power. It claims the restrictions are necessary to stop weapons reaching militant groups.
Yesterday’s peaceful interception was in sharp contrast to the events of May 2010, when Israeli commandos boarded the Turkish Mavi Marmara ship, the flagship vessel of a flotilla trying to reach Gaza, and killed nine Turkish Islamic activists, some of them armed with clubs and knives.
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore said in a statement last night: "My initial reaction is one of relief that there has been no violence and that all the Irish nationals aboard the MV Saoirse are safe and well following this ordeal.
“My priority and responsibility throughout this whole episode, as in relation to previous flotillas attempting to sail to Gaza, has been to ensure that no harm would come to any Irish national involved and I am relieved that this has been accomplished.”