Colombian President Gustavo Petro urged the Hague Group to call a “global general strike” in support of Palestine and the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), whose vessels were intercepted by Israel as they headed to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid.
“The Hague Group must call the great global general strike,” Petro wrote on X, pointing to mass demonstrations in recent hours across Rome, Milan, Bologna, Genoa, Palermo, Florence and multiple other Italian cities, as well as in other countries. The protests condemned what organizers described as the latest Israeli naval action against a peaceful humanitarian mission carrying food, medicine and essential supplies to the enclave, which faces famine, malnutrition and a severe health crisis amid what Petro calls a blockade imposed by the “Zionist regime.”
According to the Colombian leader, “if one people takes to the streets for another people, as happened last night in Italy and in other nations, the peace of humanity will begin.”
The Hague Group, which Petro asked to convene the strike, was formed in January by countries including Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Honduras, Malaysia, Namibia, Senegal and South Africa in response to the grave humanitarian crisis in Gaza that has intensified since October 2023.
One of the coalition’s commitments is to help enforce arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes.
The Global Sumud Flotilla said that 42 vessels have been stopped since Wednesday by Israeli forces and that more than 90% of participants — 473 out of a total of 500 — have been detained, including two Colombian activists, Manuela Bedoya and Luna Barreto, who were aboard the HIO.
Against this backdrop, Petro argued that U.S. President Donald Trump “must understand that no peace plan can begin if food does not immediately enter Gaza. There will be no peace if people are killed by starvation.”
“There are still ships arriving to Gaza. Do not stop them. Make sure food from around the world gets through. The U.S. and Europe will ‘lose all sense of freedom and democracy’ if they allow people to be held simply for bringing food to a starving population,” the Colombian head of state said, addressing the occupant of the White House, a key ally of Netanyahu.
It is worth recalling that on Wednesday Gustavo Petro, expelled the diplomatic delegation of Israel in Colombia in response to the action against the flotilla.
«The entire Israeli diplomatic delegation is leaving Colombia», he announced on X.
He also instructed the Foreign Ministry to “file all relevant legal claims” over the detention of Bedoya and Barreto and moved to terminate the bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Israel.
“The free trade agreement with Israel is terminated immediately,” he said on the social network.
