THE Israeli occupation forces (IOF) yesterday hijacked at dawn the Gaza-bound aid ship Madleen and kidnapped the activists on board.
The vessel, operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), was carrying essential supplies for civilians in Gaza, where Israeli genocide has been ongoing for over 20 months.
Israeli commandos used drones and unidentified chemicals during their raid on the ship, which had Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and 11 other volunteers on board.
Video from the Madleen showed the crew in life jackets with their hands raised as the ship was being raided by Israeli forces. Communications with the vessel were cut shortly after.
‘Moments ago, drones dropped unidentified chemicals on the Madleen. Immediately after, our peaceful volunteers were rammed and intercepted before Israeli forces boarded the vessel. We lost all contact with them seconds later,’ FFC wrote on Instagram.
At 2.50am FFC raised a red alert, and shared the details of the IOF hijacking. ‘The Madleen is currently under assault in international waters. Quadcopters are surrounding the ship, spraying it with a white paint-like substance. Communications are jammed, and disturbing sounds are being played over the radio,’ it said.
In a video, Thiago Avila, a Brazilian citizen and an FFC member, shared live updates.
‘We have just been attacked by a storm of drones here. They attacked humanitarian aid. They attacked the top of our cockpit. They are right here above us… We do not fear them.’
In this latest FFC mission to break the blockade on Gaza and deliver aid to the starving population, the Madleen set sail on June 1st from the Port of San Giovanni Li Cuti in Sicily.
This journey was one month after Israeli drones had bombed another aid ship headed for Gaza in international waters off the coast of Malta.
The Madleen was about 100 miles (160 kilometres) from Gaza when it was hijacked.
The Hamas Movement condemned the Israeli takeover of the Madleen, describing what happened as ‘organised state terrorism’.
‘We salute the brave activists from various nationalities who stood firm in the face of threats and reaffirmed that Gaza is not alone,’ Hamas said.
Hamas called the Madleen convoy and other Gaza-bound humanitarian convoys from Algeria, Tunisia and Jordan ‘living testimony to the failure’ of Israel’s ‘propaganda machine.’
Hamas called for the activists’ release and for the United Nations to condemn the Israeli hijacking of the boat.
‘The takeover of the Madleen will not silence the free people’s voice, nor will it stop the growing global solidarity with Gaza,’ the Movement said.
Francesca Albanese, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories said: ‘Probably Israel will deport them and take the boat. This is against the law.
‘Israel has no authority to deny aid and seize the boat, which was carrying the humanity of all of us to the people of Gaza.
‘You know there should be state navies breaking the siege instead of a boat of volunteers risking their lives. It is not true for the Israeli spokesman to say let us deliver it from our stock. Israel is not delivering any aid. Israel is in fact starving the people in Gaza while bombing them like there is no tomorrow.’
Being UK-flagged means the boat is subject to British laws and regulations, and falls under the protection of the UK.
Albanese, urged the UK government to ‘urgently seek full clarification’ and ‘secure the immediate release of the vessel and its crew