Israel will deport all those detained during a raid on a Gaza-bound humanitarian aid convoy within 48 hours, the country's government has said.
Local media quoted the Israeli Interior Ministry as saying a total of 682 people - citizens of some 40 countries - are to be deported following the operation by Israeli commandos in the Mediterranean Sea, which claimed the lives of at least 9 people.
"It was decided that the detainees would be deported immediately in accordance with legal procedures. The Interior Ministry has announced that deportation will begin in the evening and is expected to be concluded within about 48 hours," the government said in a statement.
The Israeli media said forty-five activists of those detained have agreed to be deported and left the country on Tuesday.
The Israeli military stormed the Freedom Flotilla carrying some 10,000 tons of aid to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip and some 700 human rights activists in neutral waters in the Mediterranean Sea on Monday.
Arab media reports put the death toll from the attack at close to 20. Dozens have been reported injured.
The international community has widely condemned Israel. The UN Security Council, which held an emergency meeting on Monday, demanded "prompt, impartial, credible and transparent investigation" into the attack. The Council members called for Israel to free the vessels and release the people on board the ships.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has also urged Israel to release individuals and vessels captured during the raid.
Turkey, whose ship was attacked in the siege, said on Tuesday Israel's attack would remain "a black spot" in the history of mankind and must entail harsh consequences. The country has already recalled its ambassador from Israel.
Protest demonstrations against Israeli violence took place across Europe.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called the deaths unmotivated and irreversible and called for an "extremely thorough investigation" into the incident.
TEL AVIV, June 2 (RIA Novosti)
