A crew of activists making a symbolic attempt to bring aid is anticipated to be imprisoned in port awaiting deportation proceedings.
A boat seized by Israel’s military as it attempted to break the Gaza blockade was pulled into an Israeli port after sunset on Monday, with the campaigners, including Greta Thunberg, expecting to be detained there for deportation proceedings.
The Madleen was seeking to deliver a symbolic load of relief to Gaza, which faces a potential famine following more than 11 weeks of absolute closure and ongoing harsh restrictions on food entering the region.
In recent days, Israeli soldiers have murdered dozens of Palestinians and injured hundreds more as they attempted to access a few locations where a US- and Israeli-backed logistics outfit is distributing minimal supplies.
Thunberg and the other 11 members of the Madleen crew, including French MEP Rima Hassan and Al Jazeera journalist Omar Faiad, have been out of communication since Israeli forces seized control of the boat early Monday morning.
The Israeli navy’s legal adviser told Adalah, the rights group representing the detainees, that “to the best of our knowledge, none of them are injured or currently require medical treatment.”
They were to be taken into police custody and “undergo a hearing prior to the issuance of deportation orders” after arriving in Ashdod, according to Adalah.
Although there was no hope that Israeli authorities would let the small yacht approach Gaza, attempting to reach the region by sea is perilous.
Another boat sailing as part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which arranged Madleen’s expedition, caught fire off Malta in May and transmitted an SOS following what the group claimed was an attack by Israeli drones. Israel’s military has declined to comment.
In 2010, Israeli soldiers killed nine activists as they raided a small fleet of ships attempting to transport goods, including building materials, to Gaza. Israel started blockading Gaza in 2007.
One of the last signals from the Madleen before it lost communication was a photo of the 12-person crew assembled in a circle, wearing life lifejackets and holding their hands in the air. A series of pre-recorded messages from crew members were eventually made available online.
“If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters,” Thunberg said in a brief message, encouraging family, friends, and supporters to put pressure on Sweden’s government to release her as soon as possible.
The UK-flagged Madleen set sail at a time when international criticism was rising on Israel over the hunger of Palestinians in Gaza.
In an apparent response to the group’s massive publicity, Israel’s foreign ministry denounced the crew as “celebrities” on a “selfie yacht” when it announced the yacht had been confiscated. Shortly later, it posted an image of Thunberg being offered food while others were passed food and water.
In a post on X, Israel Katz, Israel’s foreign minister, made personal attacks on Thunberg and the rest of the crew, claiming they will be obliged to view a film on the Hamas bombings that sparked the war on October 7, 2023. Approximately 1,200 people were slain, the majority of whom were civilians, and 250 were carried to Gaza, where 55 are still being held hostage.
Since then, Israeli bombs and ground assaults in Gaza have killed around 54,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom are women, children, and the elderly, and injured over 125,000, according to the territory’s health authorities, whose estimates have proven accurate in previous battles.
According to Huwaida Arraf, a human rights advocate and Freedom Flotilla organizer, Israel lacked the legal jurisdiction to hold the Madleen crew in international waters and seize aid onboard, including food, infant formula, and medical supplies.
“This seizure flagrantly violates international law and contradicts the ICJ’s binding orders requiring unhindered humanitarian access to Gaza.” These volunteers are not subject to Israeli jurisdiction and cannot be prosecuted for delivering aid or fighting an illegal blockade; their arrest is arbitrary, illegitimate, and must be ended immediately.”
The UN special rapporteur on human rights in occupied Palestinian areas encouraged the UK to secure the release of Madleen and her crew, as well as others, to defy the embargo.
“Every Mediterranean port should send boats with aid, solidarity, and humanity to Gaza,” wrote Francesca Albanese on X. “Breaking the siege is a legal duty for states and a moral imperative for all of us.”
Since the war began, the majority of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been forced from their homes and displaced many times, and food security experts warned last month that the enclave was at “critical risk of famine.”
Israel claims that food is being sent to Gaza residents via the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a covert organization led by an evangelical Christian with no prior experience distributing help in war areas.
The Israeli foreign ministry stated in tweets announcing its seizure of the Madleen that “close to” 11 million meals had been supplied in the previous two weeks. Even if the supplies were distributed equally, Gaza’s impoverished people would receive less than one meal every two days.
The shortages and acute hunger have combined to deadly effect, with Palestinians being slain by Israeli soldiers while attempting to reach GHF distribution stations.
At least four people were killed and many more injured in the most recent episodes on Sunday, according to Gaza health officials. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said that one of the dead and 13 injured were sent to its emergency room in central al-Mawasi, Khan Younis, Gaza.
MSF said that men ages 17-30 were shot while on their way to a food distribution station in Shakoush. They were transported by donkey carts, bicycles, or on foot.