Irish president says she is 'proud' of her sister arrested on Gaza flotilla ship

On course for a further deterioration in already strained relations between Ireland and Israel: Irish President Catherine Connolly said Monday she was “very proud” of her sister, who was arrested earlier in the day aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza. Her sister, family doctor Margaret Connolly, was one of at least six Irish citizens arrested on the flotilla, according to the Irish spokeswoman for the pro-Palestinian aid group. President Catherine Connolly spoke after a visit with King Charles at Buckingham Palace in London. “I am very proud of my sister, but I am also very worried about her,” she said. “I was busy today. I haven't really had a chance to get details in relation to my sister, and indeed equally importantly, her colleagues on the boat.” The incident, and the president’s public support for the Irish citizens aboard the flotilla, are expected to further worsen diplomatic relations between Ireland and Israel. In 2024, Israel closed its embassy in Dublin in protest over Ireland’s decisions to recognize a Palestinian state and accuse Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Connolly, an independent socialist politician and outspoken critic of Israel, was elected to the largely ceremonial post in October. Flotilla activists released a prerecorded message Monday from her sister Margaret announcing her arrest by Israel. “If you are watching this video, it means I have been kidnapped from my boat in the flotilla by the Israeli occupying forces, and I’m now being held illegally in an Israeli prison,” she said, holding her Irish passport and wearing a shirt bearing a map of Ireland. “Palestine’s struggle is the moral compass of our time. It is what makes us human. The Palestinians will save our humanity.” Since Monday morning, the Israeli Navy has taken control of 28 flotilla vessels near Cyprus without unusual incidents. The flotilla set sail Thursday from the Turkish coastal city of Marmaris and, as with the previous flotilla, Israel decided to stop a significant number of the boats hundreds of kilometers from the Gaza coast. The detained activists were transferred to a ship with a “floating prison” and will be taken from there to Ashdod. The flotilla included about 50 vessels and roughly 500 activists.