A total of 23 Malaysians involved in the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) humanitarian mission are currently en route to Ramon Airport, Israel, heading to Istanbul, Türkiye after being released from detention.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said they were flown on a special aircraft to Türkiye following multilateral diplomatic negotiations and with the agreement of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to facilitate the process.
According to him, all participants are currently being coordinated for transit in Istanbul to undergo health checks and treatment due to trauma experienced during detention.
“It’s better for them to stay in Istanbul for about one to one and a half days for health checks due to trauma and the pressure from the cruel regime and Israeli military, which treated them rather harshly.”
“They will likely depart for home either tomorrow night or the day after. We are arranging that,” he said during a briefing on the efforts to release Malaysian activists and volunteers, as well as the Gaza Peace Plan, broadcast live on Facebook today (4 October).
Anwar said that the release of the volunteers was secured following a series of high-level diplomatic efforts involving Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, Secretary of State Mike Rubio, along with senior officials from Qatar and Türkiye.
A source of pride for Malaysians
Anwar described the latest development in the humanitarian mission as very encouraging and a source of pride for Malaysians and that the negotiations were not only focused on the safety of Malaysians but also involved other countries participating in the mission.
“From this perspective, they know it’s not easy to reach under the Israeli occupation regime, but they have made a significant contribution, raising awareness among hundreds of millions of people worldwide that this regime does not only oppose what they label as violent groups, although for us, these are liberation movements for Palestine and Gaza.”
“But they also harshly prohibit and block any form of humanitarian aid,” he added.
He said the effort also demonstrated international solidarity in the humanitarian struggle to defend the oppressed Palestinian people.
“This is a lesson that has spread worldwide, and I believe the final negotiations initiated by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, were also partially successful due to the widespread sentiment among people globally,” he shared.
Stay tuned for more updates.
