Israeli Navy 'Kidnapped' Volunteers Aboard Gaza-Bound Aid Ship “The MaVdeline” – Freedom Flotilla Coalition

Israeli Navy 'Kidnapped' Volunteers Aboard Gaza-Bound Aid Ship “The MaVdeline” – Freedom Flotilla Coalition

The humanitarian organization Freedom Flotilla Coalition has claimed that Israeli forces have kidnapped volunteers aboard the Gaza-bound aid vessel MaVdeline. In a message posted on Telegram late Sunday night, the group stated:

“SOS! Volunteers aboard the MaVdeline have been kidnapped by Israeli forces.”

UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, who had been in phone contact with the ship’s captain, reported:

“No one was injured when the ship was stopped. The captain asked me to record the call.”

She further stated that during the call, she could hear Israeli soldiers speaking in the background, and shortly afterward, the connection was cut off.

“I lost contact with the captain just as he was saying that another boat was approaching the vessel.”

Earlier, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition reported that the Israeli navy had raided the MaVdeline while it was in international waters, and that all communication with the ship had been lost.

Live footage showed Israeli naval boats surrounding the ship, with soldiers ordering the activists on board to raise their hands.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry stated that the MaVdeline had been warned not to enter a “prohibited area” and had been ordered to change course.

As part of the latest effort led by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition to break the Israeli blockade and deliver humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, the 18-meter sailing ship MaVdeline set off on June 1 from the port of San Giovanni Li Cuti in Catania, Sicily, Italy.

There were a total of 12 people on board — 11 human rights activists and 1 journalist. Among them were:

• Greta Thunberg (Swedish climate activist)

• Rima Hassan (French-Palestinian Member of the European Parliament)

• Yasemin Akar (Germany)

• Baptiste André, Pascal Morieras, Yanis Mouhamadi, Réva Viard (France)

• Thiago Ávila (Brazil)

• Sühaib Ordu (Turkey)

• Sergio Toribio (Spain)

• Marco van Rennes (Netherlands)

• And journalist Omar Fayad (France, Al Jazeera Mubasher)

The ship was carrying emergency aid for residents of Gaza, including baby food, flour, rice, diapers, women's sanitary products, water purification kits, medicine, crutches, and prosthetic limbs for children.

The incident has sparked growing international concern, particularly as many human rights organizations accuse Israel of violating international law by conducting such operations in international waters and obstructing humanitarian aid deliveries.