Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) is on site in Copenhagen for a meeting with other European heads of state and government. At the same time, the activists on board the Gaza convoy are approaching Gaza, and are in the area where they were last stopped.
Kristersson says that many countries see with great concern the risks that people expose themselves to by traveling to Gaza:
The government has with a clarity that cannot be misunderstood said that we for ten years have advised against all travel to Gaza. All travel to Gaza. Follow that request.
The Left Party's EU Member of Parliament Jonas Sjöstedt directs harsh criticism at the government and believes that the government must act to protect Swedish citizens.
"If Israel chooses to attack the boats, there is a serious risk that Swedish citizens will be injured or, in the worst case, die in the Mediterranean. Sweden, like other countries, has a duty to protect its citizens from these illegal attacks. Spain and Italy have already taken measures to protect the fleet," says Sjöstedt in a written comment to TT.
The convoy consists of around 40 boats with several hundred activists, journalists, and members of parliament on board. Several Swedes, including Greta Thunberg, are on the trip that began in Barcelona at the end of August.
The convoy's goal is to break Israel's blockade of Gaza and deliver emergency aid.
In June, Thunberg and other activists were stopped by Israel in international waters, west of Gaza. They were taken into Israeli custody and sent home later.
