Activists in Indonesia hold a rally against Israel intercepting ships from the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza. AFPActivists in Indonesia hold a rally against Israel intercepting ships from the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza. AFPPro-Palestinian activists say Israel and ⁠US wrongly confuse advocacy for Palestinian rights with support for HamasThe NationalMay 19, 2026HeadphonesBookmarkThe US on Tuesday announced sanctions imposed on four people associated with an aid flotilla trying ⁠to access Gaza.In a statement, the Treasury Department said its Office of Foreign Assets Control is taking action against what it called the "pro-Hamas flotilla".The flotilla’s organisers said on Tuesday that Israeli forces had intercepted 41 of their boats in the Eastern Mediterranean, with 10 vessels still sailing towards the Palestinian enclave.“The pro-terror flotilla attempting to reach Gaza is a ludicrous attempt to undermine President [Donald] Trump’s successful progress toward lasting peace in the region,” Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said in the statement.Pro-Palestinian activists say Israel and the ⁠US wrongly confuse their advocacy for Palestinian rights with support for Hamas extremists.Palestinians ⁠and international aid bodies say supplies reaching Gaza are still insufficient, despite a ceasefire reached in October that included guarantees of increased aid.Most of Gaza's more than two million people have been displaced, with many now living in bombed-out homes ​and makeshift tents pitched on open ground, roadsides, or on top of the ruins of destroyed buildings.The Treasury also said it was taking action against "key actors" operating in Hamas-aligned Muslim Brotherhood networks. Updated: May 19, 2026, 6:52 PMMost popular today12345678910