Thu Jun 12 21:33:25 UTC 2025: **Headline: Most Activists Aboard Gaza-Bound Ship Deported After Israeli Seizure**

**Tel Aviv, Israel** – Ten of the twelve activists detained after Israeli forces intercepted the “Madleen,” a ship attempting to break the blockade of Gaza, have been deported. The ship was seized on June 9th in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea.

The activists, part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, were taken to Israel following the ship’s capture. Four activists, including prominent climate activist Greta Thunberg, were quickly deported after waiving their right to a hearing and signing deportation orders claiming they had “illegally” entered Israel.

The remaining eight activists refused to sign such orders. Six of them, including French-Palestinian Member of the European Parliament Rima Hassan, were deported on Thursday. French nationals Pascal Maurieras and Yanis Mhamdi remain in Israeli custody and are expected to be deported on Friday.

According to Adalah, a nonprofit legal association in Israel, two of the activists, Hassan and Brazilian Thiago Avila, were placed in solitary confinement. Adalah reports that Avila began a hunger and water strike to protest Israel’s blockade of Gaza. The organization has stated the activists were subjected to mistreatment and punitive measures.

Legal scholars argue Israel had no right to intercept the ship in international waters and is obligated under international law to facilitate aid to Gaza. Israeli courts dismissed legal arguments made by Adalah, which argued that the activists were not trying to enter Israel illegally, but were sailing to Gaza, which is occupied Palestinian land.

International reaction to the incident has varied. France and Brazil demanded the release of their nationals, while Turkiye has called Israel a “terrorist state.” Germany and the Netherlands have yet to issue public statements. UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese criticized the silence of EU institutions regarding the detention and treatment of EU citizens involved.

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