Israel destroys Mavi Marmara Martyrs Memorial in Gaza

By Abdel Rauf Arnaut

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Israeli forces destroyed the Mavi Marmara Martyrs Memorial in Gaza Port, according to the Israeli army on Thursday.

"In the past few days, in a joint operation, soldiers... took operational control of the Gaza harbor, which was controlled by Hamas,” the Israeli army said in a statement.

"All buildings in the harbor area were cleared."

There was no comment yet from Hamas on the report.

In May 2010, Israeli commandoes killed 10 Turkish activists on the Mavi Marmara aid flotilla, which was headed for Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid.

In the aftermath of the attack, Türkiye demanded an official apology from Israel, compensation for the families of those killed, and the lifting of Israel’s Gaza blockade.

In 2013, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced regret over the incident to Türkiye’s then-Prime Minister and now President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In addition to the compensation, Israel has agreed to Türkiye’s humanitarian presence in the occupied Gaza Strip.