Rome: Eight international activists from the Gaza-bound aid ship Madleen remain in Israeli custody, a rights group reported on Wednesday. "The Madleen volunteers' continued custodial detention is completely unlawful," stated the Israeli human rights organization and legal center Adalah. They called for the immediate release of the volunteers, urging their safe return to either the Madleen to continue their humanitarian mission to Gaza or to their respective countries of origin.
According to Anadolu Agency, Israeli forces had seized the British-flagged vessel in international waters early Monday, detaining its 12-strong crew. The ship embarked from Sicily, Italy, on June 6, aiming to breach an Israeli naval blockade on Gaza, where a devastating conflict has resulted in nearly 55,000 deaths since October 2023. While four activists, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, were deported to their home countries on Tuesday, eight others remain detained.
Adalah highlighted that the eight activists were charged with illegal entry into Israel, despite not seeking or intending to enter Israeli territorial waters. Their planned route was from Sicily through international waters and directly into Gaza's internationally recognized territorial waters. The activists currently held include Suayb Ordu from Trkiye, Mark van Rennes from the Netherlands, Rima Hassan, Pascal Maurieras, Yanis Mhamdi, and Reva Viard from France, Thiago Avila from Brazil, and Yasemin Acar from Germany.
Furthermore, Adalah criticized the Israeli Detention Review Tribunal for allowing authorities to extend detention arbitrarily, potentially until July 8, 2025, without further judicial oversight, violating international law. This follows the tribunal's decision to set a follow-up custody review for July 8.
Israel's continued closure of Gaza's border crossings to humanitarian aid since early March has prompted warnings from aid agencies about the risk of famine among Gaza's 2.4 million residents. In related developments, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, citing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.