ATHENS, Ohio (WCMH) -- An Ohio University professor was taken into custody by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Wednesday after the flotilla he was a part of was intercepted en route to Gaza.

According to pro-Palestine group the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, Thomas Hayes, a Columbus resident and film professor at Ohio University, was sailing on The Conscious toward Gaza when Israeli forces intercepted the boat early Wednesday. Hayes, 69, was listed among the passengers and featured in a video of eight American passengers released after the boat's interception.

According to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which tracks and organizes humanitarian ship efforts headed for Gaza, The Conscious was boarded by the IDF. It was the largest vessel of a nine-boat flotilla trying to break Israel's nava

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