Spain, Italy deploy warships to ‘escort’ Gaza-bound flotilla

Spain dispatched a naval warship armed with a cannon and machine guns, in order to “protect” Spanish citizens attempting to break Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza.

By World Israel News Staff

Spain and Italy announced Wednesday that they have dispatched naval vessels to accompany a Gaza-bound flotilla, which intends to break Israel’s naval blockade of the Strip and sail illegally through Israeli territorial waters.

The flotilla, consisting of roughly 50 boats, includes high-profile participants such as Swedish former climate change activist Greta Thunberg.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who recently accused the Jewish state of committing “genocide” in Gaza and lamented that Spain does not possess nuclear weapons — which he implied could be used to stop Israel’s war on Hamas — declared the deployment of a Spanish warship on social media platform X.

Sánchez said the move was designed to protect Spanish citizens taking part in the flotilla, while emphasizing the warship would operate strictly in international waters.

“Tomorrow, a Spanish Navy vessel will sail from Cartagena, fully equipped to assist the flotilla and carry out evacuations if needed,” Sánchez wrote.

Spanish daily El País identified the vessel as the Furor, an armed naval ship equipped with machine guns, a cannon, a drone, and a helicopter.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also confirmed the dispatch of an Italian naval frigate, describing it as a mission purely intended to safeguard and potentially extricate Italian nationals if the situation turns dangerous.

Meloni strongly criticized Italians participating in the flotilla, stressing that activists had yet to respond to her government’s alternative plan to deliver aid to Gaza via Cyprus and the Latin Patriarchate in Jerusalem.

“The participation of Italian citizens in the flotilla to Gaza is not intended to help the residents of Gaza; it is meant to sabotage the Italian government,” Meloni said.

According to recent media reports, a number of the ships in the flotilla were recently targeted by low-flying drones, which dropped flashbang grenades on deck.

Communications and GPS systems on the boats were also recently disrupted, activists aboard the ships claimed.