Lawmakers Arrive in Istanbul After Release
Three Turkish parliament members returned to Istanbul late Thursday after their release from Israeli custody. Their vessel, part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, had been seized in international waters.
Denizli MP Sema Silkin Ün, Bursa MP Mehmet Atmaca, and Hatay MP Necmettin Caliskan, all from the New Path (YY) Party, landed at Istanbul Airport at 10:20 p.m. on an Azerbaijan Airlines flight from Baku. Earlier, the MPs left Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport and connected through Azerbaijan.
At the airport’s VIP lounge, they met their families, Saadet Party Chairman Mahmut Arikan, DEVA Party leader Ali Babacan, AK Party MP Hasan Turan, and supporters.
“No Respect for International Law”
Speaking to reporters, Ün described the Israeli raid on the vessel Vicdan as a blatant breach of international law.
“Israeli forces transferred us on a 15-hour journey to Ashdod Port,” she said. “They told us we would go to prison but moved us instead to an airport, then a police station. We were kept separately for 12 hours before flying to Azerbaijan.”
Ün, who joined the flotilla aboard Vicdan, said: “Our mission began with Sumud and concluded with Vicdan. The determination shown by Sumud lives on in the Freedom Flotilla.”
Turkey to Bring Back Remaining Activists
The Turkish Foreign Ministry announced that 18 Turkish citizens detained during the flotilla operation will return home Friday on a special flight.
Spokesperson Oncu Keceli added that Turkey also plans to bring back around 80 foreign activists on the same flight.
He confirmed that the three MPs had already arrived in Turkey on Thursday evening.
Ongoing Blockade and International Reaction
Reports said the Israeli navy intercepted the Freedom Flotilla Coalition’s Thousand Madleens convoy early Wednesday, about 120 nautical miles from Gaza.
The incident followed an earlier Israeli operation that seized more than 40 boats from the Global Sumud Flotilla and detained over 450 activists from 50 countries.
Israel has repeatedly intercepted Gaza-bound humanitarian ships, confiscated cargo, and expelled activists.
The Gaza Strip, home to 2.4 million people, has been under blockade for nearly 18 years. Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed nearly 67,200 Palestinians, mostly women and children, leaving much of Gaza uninhabitable.
