In full view of cameras, Israeli Navy forces successfully took control last night of the Handala flotilla, which had set sail from Italy towards the Gaza Strip. A day after the daring operation, the security establishment instructed a thorough search of the ship’s passengers - leading to particularly surprising findings.
During the intake process in Israel, a Norwegian national, a woman in her 70s, was caught with no fewer than 21 units of hashish, Mako News reported. The elderly woman expelled some of the drugs from her mouth, but during body searches, prison service officers found additional suspicious materials she had concealed in intimate areas. After the search, the findings were transferred to the police, which opened an investigation.
The prison service emphasized that the inspection was carried out as part of detention policy procedures. Under the command of Givon Prison Deputy Warden, Chief Superintendent David Barberio, prison forces conducted the intake and search of the flotilla participants. Just as in Israel, possession of such substances is considered a criminal offense in the suspect’s home country.
The military also stressed that both the search and the seizure of the vessel were carried out with great caution. In a statement released last night during the takeover of the ship, it was noted that all passengers aboard the “Handala” were safe, as was the case with the previous flotilla involving the vessel “Madelene.” The passengers had declared before the security forces boarded the ship: “We will break the blockade on the Strip, let us sail.”