The last group of 15 Italians detained by Israel after taking part in the Global Sumud Flotilla are expected to return home on Monday. The activists were on boats intercepted last week while attempting to deliver aid to Gaza.
“They will leave on a charter flight to Athens,” said Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. “They will be assisted by our embassy both at departure and then in Greece during their transfer to Italy.”
Four Italian lawmakers who joined the flotilla were released on Friday, while another 26 citizens returned on Saturday. The remaining 15 had to wait for formal expulsion orders after refusing to sign voluntary release forms. They are among around 170 activists scheduled for expulsion on Monday.
Several of those already back in Italy have accused Israeli authorities of degrading treatment, claiming they were held in poor conditions with little food or water. Some said they were forced to sleep on the floor, while others reported being denied essential medication.
Security measures heightened in Rome
Meanwhile, security measures in Rome have been heightened ahead of Tuesday’s second anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel. Italian authorities said particular attention is being paid to the Ghetto area and other sites linked to Israel and Jewish culture.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin commented on the ongoing crisis, urging that any Middle East peace plan — including that proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump — must involve the Palestinians.
“Any plan that includes the Palestinian people in decisions about their future and allows this massacre to end, freeing the hostages and stopping the daily killing of hundreds of people, is to be welcomed and supported,” Parolin told Vatican media.
He also addressed the mass demonstrations in Italy calling for peace in Gaza, saying: “Even if these initiatives, due to the violence of a few troublemakers, sometimes risk sending the wrong message to the media, I am positively impressed by the participation and commitment of so many young people.”
Marking two years since Hamas’s “inhuman” and “unjustifiable” attack, Parolin reiterated the Vatican’s call for the release of hostages and an end to the cycle of violence.
“Anti-Semitism is a cancer that must be eradicated,” he said. “It is not enough for the international community to call the situation unacceptable while allowing it to continue. Serious questions must be asked about the legitimacy of continuing to supply weapons used against civilians.”
