Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Tuesday he will call his Israeli counterpart Gideon Sa’ar in the coming days to discuss the Global Sumud Flotilla. The flotilla is seeking to break Israel’s naval blockade and deliver aid to Gaza.
“It’s a risky operation,” said Tajani, who is also deputy premier and leader of the centre-right Forza Italia (FI).
He stressed that the government can only guarantee consular assistance for Italians involved. “We can’t do anything other than guarantee full consular support to the Italians who may encounter problems, if and when they arrive on Israeli soil,” he said.
“In the event of restrictive measures, I have instructed the embassy to provide maximum support to our fellow citizens, especially the parliamentarians.”
Tajani added he would call Sa’ar “to urge Israel to respect the mandate of parliament.”
In the coming days, Italian vessels with activists and four lawmakers from opposition parties should join the flotilla.
The Global Sumud Flotilla said a drone hit one of its boats near the Tunisian port of Sidi Bou Said. Tunisian authorities said they had not detected any drone.
Tajani reiterated the government’s position that aid for Gaza should pass through “institutional channels.”
Separately, Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, said she would not be surprised if Israel were behind the alleged drone strike. “We don’t know who carried out the attack, but we wouldn’t be surprised if it were Israel,” she told reporters in Tunis. She added that confirmation “would be an attack on Tunisian sovereignty.”
