Israeli forces intercepted the Gaza-bound Madleen aid ship in the early hours of June 9th and detained the 12 activists on board.
The ship, launched by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, began its journey from Catania, Italy, last week, intending to provide aid and break the Israeli naval blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Israeli drones encircled the Madleen and began spraying it with an unknown white substance before taking control of the ship when it was about 100 nautical miles (185km) from Gaza. The ship was in international waters when Israeli authorities forcibly detained the passengers.
The 12 activists were on board to deliver humanitarian aid in Gaza as a response to Israel’s blockade of aid supplies. They include Rima Hassan, a French-Palestinian member of the European Parliament, and Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
Four of the activists were deported back to their countries of origin, including Thunberg, who told reporters that she and her companions were “kidnapped in international waters.” The remaining eight individuals were detained and brought before an Israeli Detention Review Tribunal in the Ramleh detention facility, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition’s post on X.
A few weeks ago, on May 2nd, another aid ship by the coalition was targeted by drone strikes in international waters off Malta. In 2010, Israeli forces attacked six ships called the Gaza Aid Flotilla, which were en route to Gaza, killing nine passengers and wounding 30.
Some Tamil activists have spoken on how the episode bears resemblance to sixteen years ago, when Sri Lanka also turned away an aid ship, the MV Captain Ali, which was carrying 800 tons of relief supplies for the nearly 300,000 Tamils who were internally displaced and held in internment camps following the Mullivaikkal genocide of 2009. The ship, which started its journey from Europe, was seized on June 4, 2009, by the navy as it entered Sri Lankan waters. The government detained 13 crew members and 2 passengers for questioning, even though the ship only carried a cargo of food and medicine, and the government was calling the international community for aid.
Many have pointed to the parallels between the genocidal tactics of Israel and Sri Lanka amidst the ongoing assault in Gaza. A few weeks ago, a security analyst and former Israeli soldier cited Sri Lanka’s military campaign against the LTTE as a blueprint for “total military defeat,” despite the countless war crimes committed by the Sri Lankan state, particularly during the final phase, which many have recognized as a genocide.
The latest death toll of Palestinians killed in Gaza stands at 54,880, although this is likely a significant underestimate of the real number of casualties since October 2023.
