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Greece's foreign ministry said 161 nationals from 16 European countries landed in Athens on Monday after being expelled by Israel for taking part in a Gaza aid flotilla. Israel on Monday deported more activists who were on the flotilla bound for the devastated Palestinian territory, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg. The 45-vessel flotilla had been aiming to break an Israeli blockade to deliver aid to Gaza, where the United Nations says famine has taken hold after two years of devastating conflict. "A special repatriation flight landed safely in Athens carrying the 27 Greek citizens who took part in the 'Global Sumud Flotilla'," the Greek foreign ministry said in a statement. "This flight also facilitated the return of 134 nationals from 15 European countries," it added, without elaborating. According to the Swedish branch of the Global Movement for Gaza, the deported Swedish nationals were on board the flight. At Athens International Airport, activists unfurled a huge Palestinian flag in the arrivals hall and chanted "Freedom for Palestine" and "Long live the flotilla!", AFP reporters saw. The Global Sumud flotilla departed from Barcelona in Spain in early September. The vessels were boarded by the Israeli navy off Egypt and the Gaza Strip between October 1 and 3. The ships were forcibly diverted to the Israeli port of Ashdod. According to Israeli police, more than 470 people aboard the flotilla boats were arrested. The first deportations began on October 2 and currently 138 flotilla participants remain in detention in Israel, the foreign ministry told AFP.

King Felipe VI of Spain has called for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the delivery of humanitarian aid, stressing that there should be no longer silence over the killing and starvation in the enclave. There must be no glossing over the systematic destruction of schools and hospitals, the killing of civilians, and the deliberate infliction of starvation in Gaza, he stressed, addressing the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly. He described what is unfolding in the Gaza Strip as a matter that shocks human conscience and constitutes a profound disgrace to the international community, while calling upon the Israeli entity to immediately cease all acts of killing. King Felipe further noted that the international community must assume its responsibility to achieve peace through the two-state solution, averring that the recognition of a Palestinian state should help establish peace and regional stability in the region. He expressed his pushback on the rising voices that claim the end of multilateralism and that the UN has become defanged, calling upon all to recall the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the UN in the aftermath of WWII, and the grim chapter humanity endured during that era. In addition, the King underscored the utmost importance of cooperation and multilateralism to confront the current epochal challenges, stressing that the UN has become instrumental, cannot be dispensed with, and that no alternative can be found for it. He expressed his deep concern over the erosion of democracy and the growing departure from the fundamental values that underpin peaceful coexistence among all peoples, affirming his country's unwavering commitment to continue supporting efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace in accordance with the principles of international law. The high-level week of the UN General Assembly continues in full swing, with today featuring remarks from additional heads of state and government during the general debate, a high-level meeting on the situation of Palestinian children, the climate summit, a Security Council meeting on artificial intelligence, and other high-stakes events and dialogues.