SEPANG: After an interception lasting nearly 20 hours, the Sumud Nusantara Command Centre (SNCC) has confirmed that the 23 Malaysian volunteers participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) mission have been detained by the Israeli military (IDF).
SNCC director-general Datuk Dr Sani Araby Abdul Alim Araby said that all 23 participants were officially declared as detained at 4.25pm on Thursday (Oct 3) after communication was lost and visual evidence confirmed they had been taken into custody by the IDF.
"Initial reports confirm sightings of the vessels Sirius, Estrella, Alma, and Huga, beginning to enter the Port of Ashdod in Ashkelon.
"The SNCC anticipates the possibility that some volunteers have already been transferred ashore," he said during a press conference here on Thursday.
Sani Araby also confirmed that Malaysia's legal team in Jordan was on standby to act as representatives for any interrogations and related follow-up.
He explained that, according to standard operating procedure, the volunteers would not respond to any interrogation without the presence of an authorised representative.
Among the 23 detained Malaysians are singer Heliza Helmi and her sister, Nur Hazwani Afiqah, who were aboard the Hio; Nurfarahin Romli and Danish Nazran Murad (Grande Blu); singer Zizi Kirana (Huga); Musa Nuwayri, Iylia Balqis and Sul Aidil (Alma); Haikal Abdullah, Muaz Zainal, Zulfadhli Khiduddin and Rusydi Ramli (Sirius).
The remaining individuals are Razali Awang (Inana); influencer Nurul Hidayah Mohd Amin, also known as Ardell Aryana (Mikeno); PU Rahmat, Norhelmi Ab Ghani, Mohd Asmawi Mukhtar and Norazman Ishak (Estrella); Zainal Rashid and Ustaz Muhammad (Fair Lady); as well as Muhammad Hareez Adzrami (also known as Haroqs), Muhd Haikal Luqman Zulkefli and Taufiq Mohd Razif (Free Willy).
Previously, the 23 Malaysian volunteers were reported detained after their vessels were intercepted in international waters near the R3 red zone early Thursday morning.
The GSF, comprising over 500 activists from 45 countries, was sailing toward Gaza as a symbol of solidarity and an effort to break the Israeli blockade.
The humanitarian mission has drawn global attention, with participation from international figures such as climate activist Greta Thunberg, Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon and Nelson Mandela's grandson, Mandla Mandela.
The flotilla was sailing across the Mediterranean carrying vital food and medical supplies, bearing a message of peace that demands an end to the war and famine, and the immediate opening of humanitarian corridors to Gaza. – Bernama
