They now claim that the passengers will be sent back to their home countries, but not before, as hard-line defense minister Israel Katz announced, forcing them to watch footage of the October 7 attacks. For now, attempts to contact the passengers have proven futile.

The Madleen set sail from Italy on June 1 with a clear mission: to break Israel’s blockade and deliver aid to starving civilians in Gaza. On board were twelve activists from across Europe who chose direct action in order to draw more attention to the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in Palestine, which their governments have failed to address in any meaningful way. One of those passengers is French Palestinian member of European Parliament Rima Hassan, elected in June 2024 as a representative of the left-wing movement La France Insoumise.

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