Israeli forces have taken control of a charity vessel attempting to break the naval blockade of the Gaza Strip, officials confirmed on Sunday.
The British-flagged yacht Madleen, operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), was intercepted before it could deliver symbolic humanitarian aid to Gaza and is now being directed to an Israeli port.
The vessel, carrying a crew of 12 including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and French Member of European Parliament Rima Hassan, was aiming to raise awareness about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
The FFC reported on Telegram that the boat was boarded overnight before reaching the coast. The Israeli Foreign Ministry later confirmed the yacht was under Israeli control.
Mocking the initiative, the ministry referred to the yacht as the "selfie yacht of the `celebrities`" and stated all passengers were unharmed and had been provided with food and water. "The show is over," it added.
Rima Hassan posted on X that the Israeli military detained the crew in international waters around 2 a.m., sharing a photo of the crew seated with hands raised and wearing life jackets.
The yacht carried a small amount of aid, including rice and baby formula. According to Israeli authorities, the supplies will be transferred to Gaza via official humanitarian channels.
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant called the mission a propaganda stunt in support of Hamas and ordered the interception.
Israel`s naval blockade of Gaza has been in place since Hamas took control of the enclave in 2007 and has continued through several conflicts, including the current war sparked by the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack that killed over 1,200 people in Israel.
Since then, Gaza`s health ministry reports over 54,000 Palestinian deaths, with the United Nations warning that the majority of the population is at risk of famine. Israel maintains that the blockade is necessary to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas.
Francesca Albanese, the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, expressed support for the flotilla and called on more boats to challenge the blockade.
“Madleen’s journey may have ended, but the mission isn’t over,” she posted. “Every Mediterranean port must send boats with aid and solidarity to Gaza.”
