When flour and baby milk are a threat: The seizure of Madleen

The recent mission of Madleen, carrying Greta Thunberg and eleven others under the banner of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, has once again shone an international spotlight on Gaza – and the deadly siege Israel maintains over the Strip.

Israeli naval forces intercepted and seized the yacht in international waters on 9 June 2025, escorted it into Ashdod, and detained all 12 aboard – including Greta Thunberg, journalist Omar Faiad, French MEP Rima Hassan, Yasemin Acar, Baptiste André, Thiago Avila, Omar Faiad, Sergio Toribio, and others, each with backgrounds spanning climate activism, journalism, human rights work, and solidarity campaigns. The yacht was carrying flour, baby milk formula and other essential aid for Gaza.

The Madleen had drawn international media attention since it set sail from Catania, Italy, about a week ago. As it neared the shores of Gaza, speculation was rife about how the Israelis would respond, considering their past actions in attacking aid ships sailing to provide supplies to the Strip.

This flotilla continues a non-violent campaign stretching back decades, starting with the 2010 Turkish-led attempt that ended in the killing of nine activists aboard the Mavi Marmara. In 2018 and again in 2020, the Freedom Flotilla sailed under names like Al‑Awda, Freedom, Conscience, and Handala, carrying activists, medical teams, artists, parliamentarians and tonnes of humanitarian aid. These missions aimed to expose the legality of Gaza’s naval blockade and galvanise global solidarity.

Among the most alarming incidents was the attack on the Conscience in May 2025 – struck by armed drones some 25 km off Malta, which left the hull breached and activists injured. Such forceful responses only highlight the risks activists face in challenging the siege.

The terms of Gaza’s humanitarian reality have turned life into a daily struggle. One in five Palestinians in Gaza faces starvation, with nearly the entire population enduring acute food shortages. Markets have plummeted, and prices for what little food remains in the Strip have skyrocketed – essential items now costing up to 1,400% more than before, with cooking gas prices up by 4,000% in Gaza.

With all border crossings into Gaza under Israeli control, Israel has been systematically blocking the flow of essential food and medical supplies into the besieged Strip. In place of a functioning humanitarian corridor, the Israeli military has established so-called “aid distribution centres” deep inside Gaza, operated by the controversial Global Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). The GHF, while branding itself as an apolitical relief organisation, has been accused by credible media outlets and activists of operating with direct influence from Israeli intelligence bodies, including alleged ties to Mossad. Its role in facilitating Israeli narratives while undermining neutral humanitarian access has drawn condemnation across the world.

The experience for Palestinians attempting to access these centres is often one of peril rather than relief. And it follows the bloody trends of other Israeli aid distribution attempts in recent weeks. Families have described scenes of desperation where people wait for hours, only to be met with rubber bullets or live fire. In March 2024, Israeli forces opened fire on a crowd waiting for flour trucks near the Nabulsi Roundabout in Gaza City, killing over 100 people and injuring hundreds more. Eyewitnesses spoke of panic, stampedes, and soldiers firing indiscriminately into the crowd after a bag of flour fell and people surged forward. In another documented case from May 2024, children as young as 12 were killed while trying to reach an aid convoy escorted by Israeli forces, prompting further accusations that these distributions serve more as a trap than a relief effort.

Countless families have reported that their sons, brothers, or fathers who went to collect food from these Israeli-run centres never returned. The dead are often unclaimed in hospitals, or buried without names in mass graves, as families remain too fearful to inquire. Others are detained during aid distributions and transferred to Israeli detention centres without charge.

Rather than a humanitarian solution, these centres have become yet another mechanism of control and humiliation, turning hunger into a weapon and relief into a deadly gamble. Aid should never be distributed under the barrel of a gun.

This manufactured desperation is a reflection of the suffocating Israeli blockade – a suffocation that the Freedom Flotilla Coalition seeks to disrupt. Through daring voyages, activists break the silence, drawing global attention to what is often presented as a humanitarian necessity but amounts to state-induced starvation and suffering.

What you can do:

• Amplify their stories on social media. Follow @GazaFFlotilla on X

• Pressure UK MPs, MEPs, and media editors to spotlight the blockade’s human cost.

• Support organisations like the Freedom Flotilla Coalition and UNRWA, which risk everything to bring food, medicine, and hope to Gaza.

In the face of Gaza’s man-made famine and the theft of basic dignity, solidarity with Gaza isn’t optional – it’s essential.

The only sustainable and lawful solution remains the full lifting of the blockade, unfettered access for humanitarian agencies, and a ceasefire that guarantees the dignity and survival of the Palestinian people.