Dutch Development Aid Minister Bert Koenders visits Palestinian children at a summer camp, run by UNRWA, on the beach in Gaza City. (Wissam Nassar, Maan Images)

Twenty-one international human rights workers were seized by Israeli naval frigates in international waters Tuesday as their boat 'The Spirit of Humanity' tried to carry humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The human rights workers, including former U.S. Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and Irish Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Maguire, and nationals from 11 other countries were part of the Free Gaza Movement (FGM) efforts to break Israel's naval and border blockade of Gaza.

The activists were taken to Israel's Ashdod port and from there to detention cells at Ben Gurion international airport in Tel Aviv where they await deportation.

"They simply kidnapped the passengers," said FGM founding member Greta Berlin. "I call on the Israeli occupation forces to release our people immediately. It's funny. What are they going to do? Deport us? The last place we wanted to reach was Israel."

The Spirit of Humanity left Cyprus Monday after receiving security clearance from the Cypriot authorities. It was carrying three tonnes of medical supplies and some toys.

The boat was intercepted by naval gun vessels in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The crew was warned that if they did not return to Cyprus they would be fired on. The boat refused to follow the Israeli order, and continued to make its way to Gaza.

	Related Stories
	Israeli doctors accused of flouting ethics A fundamental difference of understanding Walking miles in Palestinian feet

The Israeli navy then jammed the boat's instrumentation, blocking its GPS, radar and navigation systems. The aid boat was surrounded by several naval gunboats until armed naval commandos forcibly boarded it and towed it back to Ashdod port.

"We didn't come with guns and weapons, but just with humanitarian aid, in an attempt to break the siege of Gaza and to tell the apathetic world about what is happening in the Strip, especially after the last war," FGM chairperson Huwaida Araf said in an interview with the Nazareth-based radio station Al- Shams.

"This is an outrageous violation of international law against us. Our boat was not in Israeli waters, and we were on a human rights mission to the Gaza Strip," said former presidential candidate McKinney.

"President Obama just told Israel to let in humanitarian and reconstruction supplies, and that's exactly what we tried to do," she added.

To read the full article please visit Inter Press Service.