KUALA LUMPUR: Several Malaysian activists participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla mission to Gaza recorded and shared videos of the tense moments when Israeli forces intercepted their ships.
Influencer Nurfarahin Romli, known as Farah Lee, sent a voice message describing how the vessel Grande Blu was attacked with high-pressure water cannon.
“At first, they sprayed a little and warned our ship to stop, but we continued because our mission was to head to Gaza,” she said in her recording.
She explained that Israeli forces eventually sprayed very strongly, causing everyone on board to be thrown off balance.
Farah Lee uploaded this voice recording on her Instagram page along with a video showing her raising her hands under Israeli forces’ orders.
In another post, she stated that Israeli forces issued a stern warning for their ship to either turn back or sail to Israel.
The Israeli forces threatened more aggressive action if the flotilla participants refused to comply with their demands.
Farah Lee is one of twelve Malaysians reported detained by Israeli forces during the mission to Gaza.
Other detained Malaysians include singer Heliza Helmi and her sister Nur Hazwani Afiqah aboard the ship Hio.
Singer Zizi Kirana on Huga and Danish Nazran Murad on Grande Blu were also among those detained.
Musa Nuwayri, Iylia Balqis, and Sul Aidil on Alma joined Haikal Abdullah, Muaz Zainal, Zulfadhli Khiduddin, and Rusydi Ramli on Sirius in detention.
Five other Malaysians have reportedly lost contact with the Sumud Nusantara Command Centre.
These include influencer Nurul Hidayah Mohd Amin, known as Ardell Aryana, on board Mikeno.
PU Rahmat, Norhelmi, Mohd Asmawi, and Norazman on board Estrella are also among those who lost contact.
Before losing contact, Ardell Aryana managed to livestream on TikTok reporting that her ship had been attacked.
She described how Israeli forces attacked their ship, causing its rear sail to break in addition to water cannon spraying.
Ardell Aryana stated that although GSF participants had raised their hands, Israeli forces continued spraying water cannon mercilessly.
She expressed uncertainty about what happened to others on her ship during the distress.
“So please record an SOS and prove to the world that Israel has broken the law,” she urged viewers.
Ardell Aryana emphasized that all on her ship were civilians from different countries carrying milk and clean water supplies for Gaza.
She appeared visibly distressed during her final livestream before communication was lost.
Heliza Helmi also recorded moments before their ship was sprayed with water cannon.
The captain instructed mission participants to be prepared for any eventuality during the interception.
“In fact, we wanted to stay on deck because this recording would serve as evidence in court later,” Heliza explained.
The captain worried about their safety and asked them to go below deck before contact was lost completely. – Bernama