UPDATE: MONDAY JUNE 9, 9AM
The Gaza Freedom Flotilla aid ship Madleen has arrived at Ashdod port in Israel carrying 12 activists who were arrested by Israeli forces in international waters to prevent them from reaching Gaza and breaking the siege.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry confirmed the detention of the activists and stated that they were all safe and had been provided with sandwiches and water.
“The show is over,” the Ministry wrote on X.
Israel later said that when they arrive in Israel they will be shown a film about “Hamas atrocities on October 7.”
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said that the activists will be deported to their home countries.
Meanwhile, Hamas decried on Israel’s interception of the aid ship as “state terrorism.”
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“The interception of Madleen at sea and preventing it from delivering symbolic aid to our people facing a genocidal war constitutes organised state terrorism, a flagrant violation of international law, and an attack on civilian volunteers acting out of humanitarian motives,” Hamas said in a statement.
It said the attempt to break the Gaza siege shows that “Gaza is not alone and that the conscience of humanity remains alive in the face of the fascist occupation.”
Hamas held Israel responsible for the safety of the activists aboard the aid ship and called for their release.
“We also call on the UN and international organisations to condemn this crime and take urgent action to break the siege on our people,” it said.
As Israel continued to close all Gaza’s border crossings to humanitarian aid since early March, aid agencies have warned about the risk of famine among Gaza’s 2.4 million population.
UPDATE: MONDAY JUNE 9, 3AM
Israeli soldiers kidnapped the activists onboard the Gaza-bound aid ship Madleen late on Sunday, said the Freedom Flotilla Coalition.
“SOS! the volunteers on ‘Madleen’ have been kidnapped by Israeli forces,” the international NGO, which organised the mission, said on Telegram.
UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, who was in phone contact with the ship’s captain, said: “At the time the boat was intercepted, no one is wounded — the captain asked me to record.”
She reported hearing Israeli soldiers speaking in the background before the line was cut off.
“I lost connection with the captain as he was telling me that another boat is approaching,” she added.
Albanese later said on X: “As the Madleen was reportedly intercepted and seized by Israeli forces in int’l waters, the UK gov must urgently seek full clarification and secure the immediate release of the vessel & its crew.”
The Madleen “must be allowed to continue its lawful humanitarian mission to Gaza,” she added.
A message from the team of French-Palestinian Member of the European Parliament Rima Hassan, who was aboard the Madleen with 11 other activists, said on X: “We have lost contact with Rima and the rest of the crew,” adding they were arrested in international waters by the Israeli army.
“According to the latest information, quadcopters were surrounding the ship and spraying it with a white substance,” the message added.
Earlier, Israeli naval forces boarded the Madleen in international waters, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which said that communication with the vessel has been lost.
Live footage earlier showed Israeli boats surrounding the ship, with soldiers ordering activists onboard to raise their hands.
Hassan said that sirens were triggered aboard the Madleen after drones sprayed the ship with a white liquid.
At that time, Albanese confirmed that two drones were seen overhead, describing them as “the dangerous ones.”
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said the navy instructed the Madleen to change course due to its approach toward what it called a “restricted area.”
As part of the latest mission organized by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition to break the blockade on Gaza and deliver aid to the region, the 18-meter Madleen set sail for Gaza on June 1 from the Port of San Giovanni Li Cuti in Catania, Sicily, Italy.
A total of 12 people are on board, including 11 activists and one journalist.
Among them are Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, French-Palestinian Member of the European Parliament Rima Hassan, Yasemin Acar from Germany, Baptiste Andre, Pascal Maurieras, Yanis Mhamdi and Reva Viard from France, Thiago Avila from Brazil, Suayb Ordu from Türkiye, Sergio Toribio from Spain, Marco van Rennes from the Netherlands and Omar Faiad, a journalist with Al Jazeera Mubasher, also from France.
The ship is carrying urgently needed supplies for the people of Gaza, including baby formula, flour, rice, diapers, women’s sanitary products, water desalination kits, medical supplies, crutches and children’s prosthetics, according to its organisers.
Five Israeli vessels are circling the Madleen aid ship, according to the UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese.
She tweeted at 11.18 UK time: “I am with the flotilla online. They have just been reached by the Israel speedboats – 5 vessels circling the flotilla. The captain is instructing the team to stay calm and seated, with their passports and life jackets on. I hear them speaking with Israeli soldiers as I type… telling they are carrying humanitarian aid and go in peace. For the time being they are just circled. I am with them, recording everything.”
Activist Thiago Avila confirmed the Madleen aid ship heading to Gaza is surrounded by Israeli boats.
He said: “The IDF is here right now, please sound the alarm. We are being surrounded by their boats… the is an interception. A war crime is happening right now, please sound the alarm.”
SUNDAY JUNE 8, 2.30PM
The Israeli Navy is preparing to intercept the Freedom Flotilla humanitarian vessel “Madleen” as it approaches Gaza’s waters, with plans to forcibly redirect it to Ashdod port, Israel’s Channel 12 reported.
As the ship approaches Gaza, the International Committee for Breaking the Siege on Gaza announced on Sunday that Israel is attempting to block the ship’s location and signal. “It seems Israel is jamming our colleagues’ location and signal on the Madleen (vessel).”
“This is serious… We’ll keep you posted,” the statement added.
The committee also published an electronic link to live-track the vessel, encouraging people to share it “all over the internet.”
“Israel is preparing to commit a war crime in the middle of international waters,” it also said.
The ship also has 12 activists on board, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and Irish actor Liam Cunningham.
The military aims to halt the ship before it enters Gaza’s territorial waters, citing its enforcement of the naval blockade, the Israeli Channel 12 reported. The activists on board will be handed over to Israeli authorities for deportation.
Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed the military to prevent the vessel from reaching Gaza.
The operation follows Israel’s earlier vow to prevent the ship from reaching Gaza, fearing it would set a precedent for future blockade-breaking attempts.
Channel 12 also reported that due to the Madleen vessel’s widespread international coverage, every Israeli procedure for dealing with it will be shared on social media.
Last week, Israeli state broadcaster KAN reported that Tel Aviv had reversed its initial decision to allow the ship to pass. The approval was withdrawn under the pretext of “setting a precedent” for future humanitarian aid missions.
The ship is carrying urgently needed supplies for the people of Gaza, including baby formula, flour, rice, diapers, women’s sanitary products, water desalination kits, medical supplies, crutches, and children’s prosthetics, according to its organizers.
Another ship operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the Conscience, was targeted by drones off the coast of Malta on May 2.
Israel, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a devastating offensive in Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 54,800 Palestinians, most of them women and children. Aid agencies have warned about the risk of famine among the enclave’s more than 2 million inhabitants.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war crimes against civilians in the enclave.
