ISTANBUL - Israeli forces opened fire on at least two vessels in an aid flotilla sailing towards Gaza on Tuesday, according to video footage and flotilla organisers, but Israel said no live ammunition was used and there were no casualties.

The flotilla was making a renewed attempt to deliver aid to Gaza after earlier missions were intercepted by Israel in international waters.

Video from the flotilla's livestream showed soldiers firing shots at two of the boats. The type of ammunition fired was not clear.

"At no point was live ammunition fired," the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Following multiple warnings, non-lethal means were employed toward the vessels - not toward protesters - as a warning. No protesters were injured during these events," it added.

The Global Sumud Flotilla later said that all 50 boats in the flotilla had been intercepted in the eastern Mediterranean, with 428 participants from more than 40 countries detained, including 78 Turks.

Israel's foreign ministry had said on X on Monday that it "will not allow any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza".

Speaking in Ankara late on Monday, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan condemned the intervention against the "voyagers of hope" in the flotilla and called on the international community to act against Israel's actions.

Ships from the Global Sumud Flotilla had set sail for a third time on Thursday from southern Turkey, after earlier attempts to deliver aid to Gaza were intercepted by Israel in international waters.

The group said previously there were 426 people taking part in the flotilla from 39 countries.

The United States Treasury said on Tuesday it was imposing sanctions against four people associated with what it described as the "pro-Hamas" flotilla.

Pro-Palestinian activists say Israel and the U.S. wrongly conflate 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 agreed in October that included guarantees of increased aid.

Most of Gaza's more than 2 million people have been displaced, many now living in bombed-out homes and makeshift tents pitched on open ground, roadsides, or atop the ruins of destroyed buildings.

Israel, which controls all access to the Gaza Strip, denies withholding supplies for its residents.

(Reporting by Omer Berberoglu, Daren Butler, Alexander Cornwell, Nina Lopez; Editing by Timothy Heritage, Alex Richardson, William Maclean and Sanjeev Miglani)

Israeli soldiers are seen on a vessel bearing symbols of the Global Sumud Flotilla, as it is brought into the port in Ashdod, southern Israel, May 19, 2026. REUTERS/Amir Cohen Amir Cohen Reuters

An Israeli naval boat intercepts the Global Sumud Flotilla en route to Gaza, in an attempt to deliver aid, at sea May 18, 2026, in this screengrab taken from a handout video. Global Sumud Flotilla/Handout via REUTERS Global Sumud Flotilla Reuters

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect.

This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 1:28 PM.

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