Israel has filed a request to permanently confiscate the Gaza-bound ship Madleen from the “Freedom Flotilla,” after it attempted to break the naval blockade on the Gaza Strip.
The request, submitted Thursday by the Haifa District Attorney’s Office on behalf of the State of Israel, was made to the Haifa District Court sitting as a maritime court. The state is asking to seize the vessel “in favor of the state treasury.”
The Madleen was intercepted early last month by the Israeli Navy as it approached the waters off Gaza. According to the government’s statement, the ship had "attempted to violate the legal naval blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip.”
“The request submitted by the Haifa District Attorney’s Office is based on international law, which grants countries the right to seize vessels that attempt to breach a naval blockade, and gives the court authority to order their forfeiture. According to the laws of naval warfare, breaching or attempting to breach a blockade gives the state the right to search and seize the vessel,” the statement said.
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The Madleen carried anti-Israel activists who said their mission was to “break the blockade and deliver humanitarian aid” to Gaza. It was stopped off the coast of Gaza and redirected to Ashdod Port, nearly a full day after Israeli commandos boarded and seized it.
Among those on board was Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. The Foreign Ministry dubbed the ship “the selfie yacht” and said that when it neared the Gaza coastline, the Navy warned it to turn back. When the vessel ignored the warnings, commandos from Shayetet 13, the Israeli Navy's elite unit, boarded it.
That night, footage was released showing Israeli soldiers distributing sandwiches and water to the activists. Later, video of Thunberg herself was also released, and the Foreign Ministry stated that she was "on her way to Israel, safe and in good spirits."