Colombia expels Israeli diplomats after Gaza aid flotilla raid
MEMO | October 2, 2025
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has ordered the expulsion of all remaining Israeli diplomats from the country, after the interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla heading to Gaza.
He also called for suspending trade agreements with Israel after two Colombian citizens were arrested on board one of the ships. “Israel detained two Colombian women in international waters,” Petro said, demanding their immediate release.
Only four Israeli diplomats were still in Colombia after President Petro cut ties with Israel last year.
In a statement, Colombia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on behalf of the government and the Colombian people, strongly condemned what it described as the kidnapping carried out by Israeli armed forces in international waters. The ministry said this act violated international law and the Geneva Conventions, and targeted the two Colombian nationals, Luna Barreto and Manuela Bedoya, both members of the Global Sumud Flotilla.
The ministry also called for the immediate release of its citizens, as well as all other members of the flotilla. It urged the governments of Spain, Bangladesh, Brazil, Slovenia, Indonesia, Ireland, Libya, Malaysia, the Maldives, Mexico, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Thailand, Turkey, and South Africa to take urgent and joint action to protect the lives and safety of their nationals.
According to the ministry, the international flotilla set sail in the Mediterranean with three objectives: to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, to raise awareness of the urgent humanitarian needs of the Palestinian people, and to highlight the need to end the war in Gaza.
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