Officials monitoring after six Canadians detained by Israel: GAC

A Barrie man was among those detained by the Israeli military after a flotilla with humanitarian aid was intercepted on its way to Gaza. Mike Le Couteur reports

A day after six Canadians were detained by Israeli forces for their attempt to challenge the naval blockade of Gaza, the Canadian government confirms consular officials in the region are monitoring the situation and standing ready to provide assistance to any Canadian citizen who requests it.

The six Canadians were part of a fleet of 10 vessels bound for Gaza that were intercepted by Israeli forces. In all, the Global Sumud Flotilla said there were 54 boats as part of their mission to deliver humanitarian aid to the war-torn zone.

“Under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, arresting authorities are required to inform Canadian citizens of their right to contact a consular representative,” said Global Affairs Canada (GAC) spokesperson Thida Ith in a statement to CTV News Tuesday. “Consular assistance is available to all Canadian citizens in need.”

While the government would not confirm the names of those arrested, a spokesperson for Global Sumud Flotilla told CTV News on Monday the six in custody were Michael France and Sebastian Tow of Vancouver, Safa Chebbi from Montreal, as well as Omar Shaban, Ko Tinmaung and Norrad Bouzide who are all from Toronto.

Bouzide was part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, while the five others were all on vessels with the Global Sumud Flotilla.

Global Affairs Canada says it continues to track developments related to the ongoing flotilla activities, adding it “is aware that Israeli security forces continue to intercept attempts to breach the naval blockade.”

“We maintain Canada’s position that (United Nations)-coordinated humanitarian assistance into and throughout Gaza must be immediately scaled up to address the catastrophic humanitarian situation,” Ith said.

The Global Samud Flotilla group says Canadian participants had previously agreed to stage a hunger strike if detained by Israeli forces.

“We have chosen the hunger strike as a form of political expression not to elicit sympathy for our own plight, but to remind the world that thousands of Palestinians have been enduring confinement, arbitrary detention, and prison violence for decades in almost total silence,” reads a statement from Safa Chebbi, the organization’s Canadian spokesperson.

The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that the remaining boats in the flotilla have been intercepted as they attempted to challenge the naval blockade.

Italy’s Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani called for an urgent review of Israel’s use of force after Italian activists on the flotilla claimed soldiers fired rubber bullets at the vessels.

With files CTV News’ Luca Caruso-Moro