Statement regarding the Global Sumud Flotilla

The Global Sumud Flotilla sailed towards Gaza again with the same result as the last time it did so – no emergency aid reached the civilian population in Gaza from its vessels. 

Campaigns have been initiated in which people are encouraged to send emails and phone the Ministry for Foreign Affairs about the Global Sumud Flotilla. This suggests that there is a high degree of awareness about the risks taken by the Swedish citizens travelling with the flotilla. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has received more than 70 000 emails as a result of these campaigns. There are Swedes all over the world in need of various sorts of consular support from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs who have not willingly put themselves in danger, unlike these people. When you call and overload the Ministry for Foreign Affairs’ emergency phone lines, you risk the wellbeing of Swedes in need of emergency assistance through no fault of their own.  

The Government has repeatedly stressed the importance of following travel advice and made it clear that consular support cannot be expected. Swedish citizens travelling with the flotilla have chosen to ignore this.

Sweden has been in regular contact with Israel to underline the importance of the Swedish citizens being treated well, and we note that the flotilla was not met with violence at sea. Despite clear personal responsibility as a result of their actions in defiance of the advice against travel, the Swedish citizens travelling with the flotilla have nevertheless received consular support from the Embassy of Sweden in Tel Aviv in accordance with applicable regulations. To this end, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs reinforced the Embassy in Tel Aviv with specially trained staff from Stockholm. 

However, when individuals then refrained from signing deportation documents or cooperate with Israeli authorities, they deliberately prolonged the deportation process out of Israel.

Staff from the Embassy of Sweden in Athens were present at the airport in Greece when the Swedes landed to assist them if necessary. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs thus never neglects its duty to assist Swedes in every way it can.

Sweden’s total humanitarian assistance to Gaza since October 2023 amounts to more than SEK 1.5 billion. Sweden is the largest donor of humanitarian support to Gaza in the EU and the fourth largest in the world. In addition, Sweden continues to provide extensive core support to several of the key humanitarian actors that are active on the ground and contribute to saving lives and alleviating the suffering of the severely afflicted civilian population on a daily basis.