‘Violation of International Law’ – Israel’s Seizure of ‘Madleen’ Condemned

June 9, 2025 News
Freedom Flotilla's Madleen is approaching the Egyptian coast. (Photo: via Freedom Flotilla Coalition X page)

By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

The Madleen, carrying an amount of aid, including food and baby formula, was boarded by Israeli forces during the early hours of Monday before it could reach the Gaza shore.

A campaign group to break Israel’s siege on the Gaza Strip vowed on Monday to continue efforts to deliver urgently needed humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave, shortly after Tel Aviv intercepted a ship carrying aid bound for the territory.

Israel Detains Madleen Activists in Ashdod, Forces Them to Watch Oct 7 Video

“(Though) we feel helpless and our capabilities are limited, we continue to do everything we can, along with the free people of the world, to reject the war and demand the opening of the crossings and the entry of aid,” the International Committee for Breaking the Siege (ICBSG) said in a statement, according to the Anadolu news agency.

“We affirm that targeting ships attempting to break the blockade will not deter us,” it added.

Attempt to Break Siege

ICBSG was among the organizers of the British-flagged ship Madleen that attempted to break the crippling blockade imposed by Israel on Gaza.

The ship, carrying an amount of aid, including food and baby formula, was boarded by Israeli forces during the early hours of Monday before it could reach the Gaza shore and was towed to Ashdod Port in Israel.

A total of 12 people went on the aid mission, including 11 activists and one journalist.

Other activists aboard the Madleen aid ship include 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.

Here is some reaction to the seizure of the Madleen by Israeli forces:

‘Monitoring Developments’ – Sweden

“The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and relevant missions abroad are aware of the situation and are monitoring developments,” the Swedish Foreign Ministry’s press office told the Anadolu news agency in an email.

“Should a need for consular support arise, the embassy and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will assess how we can best assist the Swedish national,” added the press office.

‘Violation of Int Law’ – Amnesty International

The Madleen “was carrying unarmed civilians on a humanitarian mission,” Amnesty Secretary General Agnes Callamard said on her official X account.

Israel’s “interception of Madleen violates international law,” she said.

“As the occupying power (as recognised by the ICJ), Israel has a legal obligation to ensure civilians in Gaza have sufficient food and medicine. They should have let Madleen deliver its humanitarian supplies to Gaza. In line with its obligations as the occupying power, and the legally binding orders of the International Court of Justice to prevent genocide, Israel must immediately lift its illegal blockade of Gaza, facilitate the provision of humanitarian assistance throughout Gaza, and allow international fact-finding missions into Gaza.”

Amnesty, Callamard stressed, “calls yet again on States to do far more than they have done to this date.”

‘Restraint’ – UK

During a Downing Street briefing, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s official spokesperson told reporters that they want to see the situation over Israel’s interception of the aid ship and detention of activists on board “safely with restraint, in line with international humanitarian law,” Anadolu reported.

‘Genocidal Policies of Israel’ – Türkiye

Israel’s intervention against the Madleen “while it was in international waters is a clear violation of international law,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“This heinous act by the Netanyahu government, which threatens the freedom of navigation and maritime security, once again demonstrates that Israel is acting as a terror state,” it added.

“The rightful reaction of the international community against the genocidal policies of Israel, which uses hunger as a weapon in Gaza and prevents the delivery of humanitarian aid, will continue,” the ministry highlighted.

“Israel’s aggressive and unlawful actions will not silence the voices that stand up for human dignity and universal values,” it concluded.

‘Secure Immediate Release’ – UN Expert Francesca Albanese

“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,” UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese said on X.

“While #Madleen must be released immediately, every Mediterranean port should send boats with aid, solidarity, and humanity to Gaza. They shall sail together—united, they will be unstoppable. #BreakingTheSiege is a legal duty for states, and a moral imperative for all of us,” she also said.

‘State Terrorism’ – Hamas

Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas issued a statement calling Israel’s action “an act of piracy and state terrorism.”

Hamas reportedly praised the activists for their courage and solidarity, asserting that Gaza is not alone and continues to be supported by the global conscience. The statement emphasized that the ship and other solidarity efforts from countries like Algeria, Tunisia, and Jordan “reflect the growing failure of  Israeli propaganda and the strength of international support for Gaza.”

Hamas demanded the immediate release of the detained activists, urged the UN and international bodies to act, and reaffirmed that the blockade on Gaza “is a crime that must be confronted.”

‘Deafening Silence’ – European Parliament’s Left Group

“Illegal detention of 12 humanitarian workers and peaceful activists, including The Left MEP Rima Hassan, (is) part of Israel’s wider strategy to starve Palestinians and hide it from the world,” the European Parliament’s Left group said in a statement, according to Anadolu.

“This interception, carried out outside Israeli territorial waters, constitutes a blatant violation of international law, including maritime and humanitarian law,” it said.

The statement also underlined that the arrest of the crew members and the confiscation of aid intended for a population in immediate humanitarian distress is “unacceptable, and is clearly part of a wider strategy to starve and massacre Palestinians in Gaza while hiding Israeli war crimes from the world.”

In the statement, French politician Manon Aubry, co-chair of the Left, said the interception took place against a “backdrop of deafening silence from political leaders in Europe and the world” about the plight of Gaza.

“We demand immediate action from European authorities to guarantee the safety of the crew and allow humanitarian aid to enter,” she said. The statement also called on states, the EU, the UN, and the international community to strongly condemn this “illegal detention,” demand the immediate and unconditional release of all crew members, and urge Israeli authorities to allow immediate and unimpeded entry of humanitarian aid to Gaza.

France

In a statement, the French Foreign Ministry said it is in contact with Israeli authorities to facilitate French nationals’ swift return to the country, according to Anadolu.

In a separate statement, Elysee Palace said President Emmanuel Macron “has asked that our six French nationals be allowed to return to France as soon as possible.”

‘Turning a Blind Eye’ – Ireland

“What the flotilla has highlighted is the urgent need for humanitarian aid to get into Gaza. What has happened is another effort by the Israeli authorities to stop the entry of aid. It should not fall to any small group of civilians to get aid into Gaza,” the Irish Foreign Minister Simon Harris said in a statement.

“Ireland has consistently called on Israel to lift its blockade and allow unimpeded access of humanitarian aid at scale into Gaza, in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles. The UN and humanitarian organisations must be allowed to work independently and do their job. It is a shame on the world and international community that people are starving in Gaza,” he added.

“The question we should be asking today is not a debate about the merits or not of the flotilla but how it has come to this; that the world is turning a blind eye to starving children in Gaza,” Harris stated.

‘Form of Piracy’ – Iran

“The assault on this flotilla, since it happened in international waters, is considered a form of piracy under international law,” Esmaeil Baqaei, a spokesman for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reportedly said, according to Al Jazeera.

Israel’s Top Diplomat Summoned – Spain

Spain’s Foreign Ministry on Monday summoned Israel’s top diplomat in Madrid to protest the interception of the Madleen in international waters, according to local media reports, cited by Anadolu.

The ministry told Spanish daily El Pais and broadcaster Cadena Ser it had summoned Dan Poraz, charge d’affaires at the Israeli Embassy in Madrid, after Israeli forces intercepted the flotilla.

“The ministry is in contact with the Spanish national involved, his family and Israel’s Foreign Ministry, and is providing consular assistance,” it told El Pais.

Among the passengers was Spanish activist Sergio Toribio.

‘Cowardly and Illegal’ – CAIR

“We strongly condemn the cowardly and illegal Israeli attack on the Madleen as it approached Gaza with desperately-need humanitarian supplies. This is a blatant act of international piracy and state terrorism,” the Council on American Relations (CAIR)’s National Executive Director Nihad Awad said in a statement.

“The Israeli occupation has no legal right to blockade the Gaza coast, much less to drop chemical weapons on humanitarian aid boats and abduct their passengers in international waters,” Awad stated. He added that the Israeli government “must account for and immediately release the Madleen and its humanitarian activists, lift its blockade of aid to Gaza, and end the genocide.”

“We call on governments – especially western governments funding Israel’s genocide and Arab Muslim governments watching it happen – to show an iota of the courage demonstrated by those on the Madleen by using every tool at their disposal to force an end to the genocide.”

‘Act of Piracy’ – Yanis Varoufakis

“Israel’s Act of Piracy on the High Seas (illegally storming the Madleen & kidnapping its crew) serves one purpose: To defend its right to continue unobserved and unimpeded the Genocide of Palestinians. An Act of Piracy is thus committed in the process of concluding a Genocide,” said Yanis Varoufakis, Greek economist and politician, on X.

(PC, Anadolu)

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