Mehmet Kaplan. Photo: Tobias Petersson/Times of Israel.

A Turkish-born minister in the new Swedish cabinet sworn in on Oct. 3, took part in a foiled attempt to breach an Israeli maritime blockade against arms smuggling to Gaza in 2010, according to Israeli and Turkish media.

The pro-Palestinian Mehmet Kaplan, 42, was among the so-called human rights activists who took part in a six-ship flotilla at the end of May, 2010, led by the Mavi Marmara ferry.

Kaplan is to take on the city planning and environment ministry, in the Social Democrat government led by Prime Minister Stefan Loefven, who won elections on Sept., 14.

The Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Turkish IHH (Insani Yardim Vakfi), which organized the flotilla, said they were bringing humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, although later inspection showed the meager contents in the holds to be nearly unusable: expired medicine, broken wheelchairs, and old clothes.

Despite repeated calls by the Israeli navy to change course and offload the aid at Ashdod Port for transshipment to Gaza, the flotilla continued on its way until helicopter-landed Israeli commando forces overcame violent opposition by the passengers. In the melee, the soldiers, armed with sidearms and paintball guns, killed nine rioters, and several soldiers sustained severe injuries during the on-deck clashes.

Israeli forces arrested Kaplan, a former Greens and Environment Party lawmaker, when the commandeered vessels reached Ashdod, and then put him on a flight back to Sweden.

Watch an IDF video of the timeline of the Marmara takeover:
[iframe width=”480″ height=”360″ src=”//www.youtube.com/embed/z31GesVrBjc” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen>]

Watch an nightscope video of IDF commandos rappelling down to the deck of the Marmara, where they were attacked by an armed mob:

[iframe width=”480″ height=”360″ src=”//www.youtube.com/embed/gYjkLUcbJWo” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen>]

In a related development, it was revealed that another member of the ruling Social Democratic Party wrote on his Facebook page over the summer that “the Israeli Mossad” provided training to ISIS, according to a local Swedish newspaper.

“ISIS is being trained by the Israeli Mossad. Muslims are not waging war, they are being used as pawns by other peoples’ game,”Adrian Kaba, who represents the his party on the Malmö City Council and the regional government, wrote in a statement on his Facebook page on July 21, the Swedish newspaper Sydsvenskan said.

Meanwhile, on Monday, Israel’s Foreign Ministry censured Sweden’s ambassador over a statement by Lovfen on Sweden’s intent to recognize a Palestinian state.

Deputy Director-General of the Europe Division, Aviv Shir-On, expressed Israel’s “concern and disappointment” with the statement.