During the night of June 8 to 9, 2025, the humanitarian ship Madleenon the way to Gaza to provide humanitarian aid, was intercepted by the Israeli army on the high seas, about 160 kilometers off Gaza. On board were 12 activists, including environmental activist Greta Thunberg and the European deputy Rima Hassan.
Shortly after the approach, all communications were brutally cut, and contact with the ship was lost. Videos broadcast on social networks show Israeli soldiers asking passengers to stop filming and raising hands, suggesting muscular intervention. The Israeli army has confirmed the intervention, specifying that the ship was heading for the Israeli coasts and that passengers would be expelled to their countries of origin.
This interception comes as the Freedom Flotilla, after being attacked last May, had revived a new humanitarian mission. THE Madleen had left Catania, in Sicily, on June 1, with food, medical equipment and desalination equipment for Gaza. Along the way, the ship had died to rescue four migrants in distress in the Mediterranean Sea.
The interception of Madleen has aroused a wave of international indignation. In France, hundreds of people gathered in the middle of the night Place de la République in Paris to protest this action, responding to Rima Hassan’s call. The Insoumise France party denounced a “blatant violation of international law”, stressing that the ship was in international waters at the time of interception.
