Read the last letter of a Jew from the Sumud Flotilla before facing the authorities of a country that does not shrink from the horrors of genocide

• Sumud flotilla on the verge of being broken: Has the hope of the global conscience of humanity to stop the horrific genocide in Gaza been sunk?

Written by: Fuad Đidić

The Global Flotilla of Conscience has just entered the "red zone." Dramatic moments as they are intercepted by two Israeli navy vessels. From a patrol boat, a woman whose face is not visible sends sharp warnings: "You are entering a restricted zone," "You are in a high-risk area."

On the other side, a volunteer responds: "We are carrying aid, food, water, baby food..."


Sumud flotilla

However, all communications are heavily jammed... Israeli authorities bombard the flotilla boats with large water cannons... The crews fear whether their boats will be sunk... Whether they will survive... More than 500 volunteers from 44 countries are on nearly 60 boats.

All this is still happening in international waters over which Israel has no jurisdiction. The first reports arrive that dozens of activists have already been taken to an Israeli port on charges of illegal entry into Israel. One of the boats flies the flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

People in the countries from which the activists originate are rising up. Will anyone, after 20 years, break the toughest naval blockade ever imposed in the world?

David Adler, a Jew, coordinator of the "Progressive International," is one of the participants in this global march of conscience. With exceptional intuition, he foresaw what awaits this flotilla when it meets the Israeli authorities. That is why he wrote his final message on Wednesday.


David Adler

To John Nichols, a friend and freelance journalist for Western media, he sent a text with the following content: "This is my last letter from the Global Sumud Flotilla before our likely interception – which, coincidentally, is timed to coincide with the arrival of Yom Kippur. However, this coincidence is an opportunity – to connect with my Jewish colleagues across the United States and the world and to involve them in the flotilla's mission of 'tikkun olam'." Tikkun olam is a Jewish concept referring to "repairing the world."

It is quite certain that David Adler's letter may later gain its true historical weight, especially since it was written in a dark moment of history for Palestine, but at the time of the holiest Jewish holiday, "Yom Kippur," when Jews renew their mission to do good deeds wherever they may be.

However, this letter contains not only a message for Jews. Adler also touched on the visions of all those other religions that swear to change the world while destroying people and nations different from them, whether by faith or nationality.

Here, let us read what David Adler wrote in his last letter before facing the authorities of a country that does not shrink from the horrors of genocide:

"Today I am writing a very personal letter to you all – a letter about what it means to me to be Jewish on a mission that is set to arrive in the 'Red Zone' during Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. I almost never write 'as a Jew.' I share the exhaustion of the compulsion to put Jewish feelings first – when genocide is committed in the name of the Zionist 'national interest' and when activists are detained, tortured, and deported in the name of our 'security.'

But today I felt the need to register myself in that category – as one of the few Jews on this mission that gathers over 500 people from more than 40 countries around the world.

I believe that the timing of our flotilla's arrival is not coincidental. On the contrary, I believe it is a blessing that we are approaching interception at the start of Yom Kippur – our annual day of atonement – which calls us to reflect on our sins and what we can do to correct them in the spirit of tikkun olam.

How can we atone for what has been done in our name? How can we seek forgiveness for sins that multiply hour by hour, as bombs and bullets fall on Gaza? How could we even take seriously our mandate to 'heal the world' when the State of Israel is so determined to destroy it?

If there is any part of the Torah that I still remember, it is this obligation it gives us: 'Justice, justice you shall pursue.' How could we stand by while the State of Israel perverts this sacred obligation, overseeing a holocaust of the Palestinian people?

Greetings from the Global Sumud Flotilla as we make our final approach to Gaza ⛵️

Today, I am writing a very personal letter to you all — a letter about what it means to me to be Jewish on a mission that is set to arrive to the “Red Zone” during Yom Kippur, the holiest day of… pic.twitter.com/3320ViyG9x

— David Adler (@davidrkadler) September 30, 2025

I joined this flotilla just like any other delegate – to defend humanity, before it is too late. But on Yom Kippur, I remind myself that I am here also because my Jewish heritage demands it.

As a young man, my grandfather Jacques Adler joined the Parisian resistance against the Nazis, risking his life to sabotage their operations, even as his friends and family were sent to death in concentration camps.

That is the tradition I am called to and the definition of 'justice' that seems faithful to my Jewish identity – because the same genocidal fury that was directed against my ancestors is now being taken up by its main victims.

Yom Kippur is a day of fasting, a way to manifest our atonement in physical form. But for the last two years, the hungry people of Gaza have had no choice but to forgo their daily bread.

If Israeli forces intercept us on Yom Kippur, let them see what true atonement looks like. Not fasting in comfort while starving their neighbors. Not praying in safety while dropping bombs over their heads. Atonement means action.

So, as the sun sets tonight and the fast begins, I hope my fellow Jews will join me in redefining our approach to atonement – together with silent prayer and courageous action to end this horrific genocide.

G'mar chatima tova."