Israel seizes Gaza-bound aid ship in international waters, “kidnaps” crew – National & International News – MON 9Jun2025

Israel seizes Gaza-bound aid ship in international waters, “kidnaps” crew.

Trump mobilizes 700 Marines to quell LA protests against ICE.

Israel seizes Gaza-bound aid ship in international waters, “kidnaps” crew

Late last week, a small ship called the Madleen set sail from Malta under a British flag. The Madleen was manned by activists from the Freedom Flotilla Coalition whose mission was to deliver a ton of humanitarian aid to the starving Palestinians and to break Israel’s decades-long illegal blockade of Gaza. On board were 11 activists including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, French member of European Parliament Rima Hassan, and French physician Baptiste Andre. The others are citizens of Germany, Brazil, Turkey, Spain, and the Netherlands. French journalist Omar Faiad was also aboard, reporting for Al Jazeera.

In the pre-dawn hours of Monday morning, the Madleen was about 120 miles in international waters. Israeli naval vessels and drones harassed the small boat and its passengers, jamming the comms, and spraying a white substance which the passengers said caused their eyes to burn and general discomfort. Then Israeli commandos boarded the vessel and at that point communications were cut.

Shortly thereafter, FFC released pre-recorded videos from the activists aboard. Greta Thunberg’s began, “If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by Israeli occupational forces” and calls for “pressure” to ensure she and her comrades are released. Videos from the others follow a similar formula.

The Madleen was then diverted to the Israeli port at Ashdod and Israeli authorities commandeered the aid aboard, which included food, water, baby formula, and medical supplies. The activists are reportedly being detained in a prison near an airport in Ashkelon. They are expected to be brought for hearings and then deported to their respective countries.

Israel’s “blatant act of piracy”

Few countries have bothered to make statements on the incident, but the few that have condemned Israel’s actions and demanded the safe release of the activists. Turkey’s Foreign Ministry stated that “This heinous act by the Netanyahu government, which threatens the freedom of navigation and maritime security, once again demonstrates that Israel is acting as a terror state”.

Human rights attorney and FFC spokeswoman Huwaida Arraf considers that the group’s members have been “abducted” in international waters, a violation of international law. 

Amnesty International and the International Committee of the Red Cross agree. The ICRC stated that “Israel has no legal authority to detain the international volunteers on board the MV Madleen. We believe this attack is a flagrant violation of international law and disregard the International Court of Justice’s rulings ordering unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza. These volunteers are not under occupation and cannot be prosecuted for providing assistance or challenging the illegal blockade. Their detention is arbitrary and unlawful and must end immediately.”

Some went further, with the Council on American-Islamic Relations characterizing Israel’s actions against the Madleen and her crew as “a blatant act of international piracy“.

Israel’s previous attacks on activists at sea

Just a few weeks ago, the Conscience, the ship originally intended to use by FFC’s activists, was targeted with a drone off the coast of Malta. The attack triggered an explosion that injured four crew members and disabled the vessel. Israel is widely believed to be responsible for this attack and has not denied involvement.

In 2010, Israeli commandos attacked the Mavi Marmara, another ship seeking to break Israel’s illegal blockade of Gaza. That assault resulted in the deaths of 10 activists, most of them Turkish citizens. Despite an international outcry, and the urging of judges in the pretrial chamber of the international criminal Court, then-ICC Chief prosecutor Fatou Bensounda repeatedly refused to bring charges against Israel. Last year, it was revealed that Israel targeted Bensouda and others at the ICC with a years-long campaign of intimidation and blackmail by Israel.

Related: Israel killed 60 in Gaza on Monday, including 14 waiting for aid.

Trump mobilizes 700 Marines to quell LA protests

President Trump has given the order to mobilize 700 Marines to prepare for deployment to downtown Los Angeles after days of protests over heavy-handed tactics by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Marines will not be empowered to make arrests and are being deployed to protect federal officials and facilities, officials say.

This announcement, in addition to Trump’s announced intent to mobilize a total of 4,000 National Guard troops has provoked even more anger among protesters. It also earned the ire of California’s Governor Gavin Newsom. Trump federalized California’s National Guard for the first time since 1992. He did so over the objections of the state’s governor, the first time such a thing has been done since the Civil Rights era of the 1960s. Newsom described Trump’s “unlawful” mobilization of California’s National Guard and threats to mobilize the Marines as “the acts of a dictator“.

As the violence between federal agents, police and protesters escalated over this weekend, so did the war of words between Newsom and the Trump administration. At one point, Trump border czar Tom Homan threatened to arrest both Newsom and LA Mayor Karen Bass. Speaking to local news media, Newsom responded, “Tom, arrest me. Let’s go.”

Newsom has sued the Trump administration to try to force him to relinquish his command of California’s National Guard. Title X, the authority cited by Trump to nationalize the guard, requires a request, or at least consent, from a state’s governor.

How we got here

Last week, ICE stepped up arrests of migrants across the country, but particularly in LA. They have increased their targeting of courthouses and places of employment, as well as arresting migrants coming in to do mandatory check-ins at ICE facilities. This was apparently at the instigation of White House advisor Stephen Miller, who reportedly berated ICE officials last week for mainly targeting violent criminals, urging them to target workplaces.

On Friday, ICE initiated mass raids of a garment factory and a Home Depot in LA. These highly militarized raids provoked an outpouring of anger in LA, leading to the protests. Following Friday’s raids, about a thousand protesters encircled the ICE detention center in downtown LA, demanding the release of the people detained. Federal agents responded by firing tear gas and rubber bullets into the crowd. 

Complicating matters further from a law enforcement standpoint, according to the LAPD, ICE carried out these raids without giving them a heads up. With no advance warning, LAPD was not prepared to immediately respond to crowds of protesters angry about the raids. Nevertheless, on Friday, the LAPD characterized protests as being peaceful.

Weekend escalation

Things escalated considerably on the second and third days, Saturday and Sunday. There were widely reported instances where protesters summoned Waymos and set them on fire. Waymos are AI-driven taxis which have long been a source of contention with locals in LA. There have also been some reports of protesters throwing rocks, but these incidents have not been nearly as widespread as Trump and his officials have suggested. The vast majority of the demonstrators have remained peaceful.

There were also scenes of brutality against unarmed protesters, not only from federal agents but also from the LAPD. In addition to the usual tear gas and rubber bullets, several instances were caught on camera of mounted LAPD officers urging their horses to trample protesters who had fallen in the road. When the protesters attempted to get to their feet, the mounted officers struck them with their truncheons, knocking them back to the ground. A news camera caught this happening to a man from above and a bystander shot this video on their phone of the same happening to a woman. 

In another case, video shows an LAPD officer taking aim at and shooting a rubber bullet at an Australian reporter who was in the middle of a live news broadcast.