Overview

• Israeli commandos intercepted the British-flagged Madleen early June 9 while it sailed from Sicily, surrounding the ship near Egypt’s Port Said to enforce Israel’s naval blockade.
• Twelve activists, including Greta Thunberg, Rima Hassan and Liam Cunningham, were taken to Ashdod port where they received sandwiches and water and will be returned to their home countries.
• Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the IDF to show the detainees graphic footage of Hamas’s October 7 attacks to counter what he described as a publicity stunt.
• Israel’s Foreign Ministry branded the flotilla a “selfie yacht” media provocation, noting that more than 1,200 aid trucks and nearly 11 million meals have entered Gaza through official channels over the past two weeks.
• The Freedom Flotilla Coalition decried the boarding as unlawful kidnapping in international waters and signaled it will pursue legal challenges, heightening diplomatic and legal disputes over the blockade.