Bangladeshi citizens on Thursday condemned the Israeli forces for intercepting several ships and detaining hundreds of activists from the Global Sumud Flotilla carrying humanitarian aids to the besieged Gaza Strip.
They demanded the immediate release of the detained civilians and the safe passage of the humanitarian aid flotilla to Gaza.
In a statement, Socialist Party of Bangladesh general secretary Bazlur Rashid Firoz said that by obstructing humanitarian missions, Israel had shown utter disregard not only for the rights of the Palestinian people, but also for the conscience of the聽 international community.
He said that the act constituted a violation of international human rights law, adding that the incident once again exposed the racist and criminal nature of the Israeli Zionist government.
Firoz further said that military action against civilian vessels in international waters had placed the lives of innocent civilians at grave risk.
Flotilla includes at least 44 civilian boats carrying about 500 activists.
The Community for Freedom and Justice, a group of activists from different background, also protested against the incident and demanded the unconditional release of the detained activists.
At a 鈥楽olidarity with Palestine鈥� rally in the capital鈥檚 Shahbagh area, they also called for an end to the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza and urged the international community to ensure the full independence of Palestine.
The rally also praised renowned Bangladeshi photographer and activist Shahidul Alam for joining the flotilla team still struggling to reach Gaza.
Ganasamhati Andolon chief coordinator Zonayed Saki and its executive coordinator Abul Hasan and the University Teachers鈥� Link, a coalition of educators from public and private universities in Bangladesh, in separate statements also condemned the interception by the Israeli forces.聽
The Bangladesh Youth Synergy Alliance in a press invitation announced a protest rally at around 3:00pm today at Manik Mia Avenue in Dhaka city, condemning the interception of the Sumud Flotilla and the ongoing genocide in Palestine.
The BBC reported that Israeli forces on Wednesday intercepted the flotilla carrying aid bound for Gaza and detained hundreds of activists, including environmentalist Greta Thunberg.
The BBC, quoting the Israeli foreign ministry, also said that it had intercepted all but one of the boats from the Global Sumud Flotilla, and that those on board were being transferred to an Israeli port for deportation.
The boats were stopped in international waters, with the first intercepted about 70 nautical miles off the Gaza coast and others closer in, it reported, adding that Israel had been policing the area despite not having jurisdiction there.