The activist-led “Global Sumud Flotilla” heading to Gaza protected by a Spanish military vessel poses “no threat to anyone”, including Israel, Spain's Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told Reuters on Thursday.
In an interview, Albares added that Spain had accepted Belgium's request to assist Belgian citizens on board the flotilla if needed, and was holding conversations with Ireland on the same subject.
"The mandate of the mission is very clear. We are having many incidents with this flotilla and this ship is there to provide assistance to the Spanish, now also to the Belgian citizens and we are talking with other European colleagues enquiring as to whether we can do the same thing," he said.
This comes despite the reported incidents remaining unverified.
He added that the mandate of the aid flotilla was also clear: "We are talking about a peaceful humanitarian flotilla...that is no threat to anyone, no threat for Israel."
Its single objective is, "that humanitarian assistance can be accessed by the people of Gaza, I don't see why anyone would object or want to harm them," Albares said.
Such flotillas, however, can carry political motives and risk heightening regional tensions. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticised the flotilla initiative as "gratuitous, dangerous and irresponsible".
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Writing by David Latona; Editing by Aislinn Laing, Aidan Lewis)