One Month After Drone Attack, Aid Ship Defies Blockade & Sets Sail For Gaza

A month after an earlier aid ship was attacked by drones in the Mediterranean, a new civilian vessel named ‘Madleen’ has set sail toward Gaza carrying humanitarian aid and international activists.

The mission, organised by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), began on June 1, 2025, at 16:00 GMT+2 from the port of Catania, Sicily, in a direct challenge to Israel’s blockade on Gaza, which the group calls illegal and genocidal.

The Madleen is carrying symbolic yet essential humanitarian supplies including baby formula, rice, flour, diapers, sanitary pads, water desalination kits, crutches, children’s prosthetics, and medical supplies for Palestinians in Gaza.

The ship also carries 12 international volunteers, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, French-Palestinian Member of European Parliament Rima Hassan, and Irish actor Liam Cunningham, known for his role in Game of Thrones.

The vessel is named after Madleen, the first and only female fisherwoman from Gaza in 2014. Organizers said her name was chosen to represent Palestinian resilience and global resistance against policies that amount to collective punishment and starvation.

The mission comes just a month after another aid ship, the Conscience, also part of the Freedom Flotilla, was struck by two drones in international waters off the coast of Malta in early May. The FFC blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the ship’s front section. Israel has not responded to these accusations.

Video Credits: ABS-CBN News/YouTube

According to the FFC, this mission is not a charity drive, but a peaceful, non-violent action meant to directly challenge the ongoing blockade of Gaza. All activists and crew members aboard the Madleen have received nonviolence training, and the group says the ship is unarmed.

Before departure, Greta Thunberg told reporters that they were doing this mission because stopping would mean losing their humanity. She said even though the mission was dangerous, the silence of the world in the face of what she described as “genocide” was far more dangerous. She became emotional while speaking, emphasising the need for continued efforts to support Gaza.

Rima Hassan, who has been barred from entering Israel due to her opposition to its military actions, said that silence is a form of complicity. She described the ship as carrying not just supplies, but a demand to end the siege and what she described as genocide.

FFC stated that this mission continues the legacy of earlier efforts, including the 2010 Mavi Marmara incident, when ten activists were killed by Israeli forces while trying to deliver aid to Gaza. According to the group, global inaction has allowed the blockade and suffering to continue for over 15 years.

According to the United Nations, conditions are now the most severe since the Israel-Hamas war began 19 months ago, with nearly two million people at risk of famine. Although Israel slightly eased the blockade on May 19, allowing limited UN-led aid operations, humanitarian groups say restrictions, lawlessness, and looting are still blocking meaningful relief.

On Monday, a new aid channel known as the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation was launched by Israel and the United States. However, UN agencies and international NGOs have refused to cooperate with it, claiming it is not neutral and forces the displacement of Palestinians as part of its distribution method.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, Israel’s military actions have killed over 52,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, since the war began following the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that killed 1,200 people in Israel and led to the abduction of 251 hostages. Israel says 58 hostages remain, with 23 believed to be alive.

While Israel defends its blockade as necessary to pressure Hamas and secure the return of hostages, human rights groups and growing numbers of international critics, including FFC, say the policies amount to war crimes and genocide, allegations that Israel strongly denies.

Activist Thiago Avila, one of those on board the Madleen, discussed the upcoming Global March to Gaza, which will involve doctors, lawyers, journalists, and others marching from Egypt to the Rafah border in mid-June, demanding an end to the siege and calling for open humanitarian access.

Despite the risks and obstacles, the FFC said the mission will go ahead. “We will not be deterred. We will not be silenced,” the group stated.

Reference: freedomflotilla

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