As announced, Israel prevented the arrival of a small boat - with 12 pro-Palestinian activists on board, led by Greta Thunberg - to the Gaza Strip, under maritime blockade since Hamas took control in 2007.

The Madleen, which left Sicily a week ago under the umbrella of the so-called Freedom Flotilla Coalition and flying the British flag, with the stated aim of bringing humanitarian aid to the Palestinian enclave, was intercepted by the Israeli Navy. After the vessel was seized without incident after refusing to leave the ship for Gaza, the activists were taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod and will then be returned to their respective countries. Among them are Spanish activist Sergio Toribio and French MEP Rima Hassan.

While the organization denounced that the "boat was attacked in international waters where the activists were kidnapped," the Israeli Foreign Ministry released images of soldiers handing out bottles of water and snacks to Thunberg and the other activists: "All passengers on the selfie yacht are safe and sound. They were provided with sandwiches and water. The show is over."

"The Foreign Ministry is in contact with the affected Spaniard, his family, and the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, exercising consular protection over our citizen. The Foreign Ministry has summoned the chargé d'affaires of the Israeli embassy in Spain to protest what happened," Marina Pina reported, according to Foreign Affairs sources.

Defense Minister Israel Katz has asked the army to show them video footage of the 612-day-old jihadist attack in southern Israel that triggered the massive offensive in the war-torn Gaza Strip upon arriving in Ashdod."It is important that anti-Semite Greta and her fellow Hamas supporters see exactly what the Hamas terrorist group they came to support is, who they are working for, and what atrocities they committed against women, the elderly, and children, and who Israel is fighting to defend itself against." Katz said he would continue the offensive "until Hamas surrenders and the hostages are released."

As on land, what happens in the Mediterranean is also the scene of a duel of narratives.

On the one hand, the 12 activists from various countries stated in their connections and messages on social networks from the boat that the objective was to bring"symbolic" humanitarian aid and above all to raise international awareness about the dramatic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip."Regardless of the odds against us, we have to keep trying. It is a symbolic amount (of aid) but it is an act of solidarity with the Palestinian people," said Thunberg, adding that"the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity."

"From a legal and moral standpoint, Israel has no right to intercept this vessel. The people of Gaza, besieged, starving, and threatened with annihilation, have the legal right to decide who enters their territories," asserted the organization of an initiative it defined as a "nonviolent protest against Israel's illegal siege and its escalating war crimes."

"Any interception of the sailboat would constitute a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law," warned one of the participating associations, aware, like everyone else, that it would be diverted to Ashdod and would not reach the shores of Gaza to carry aid consisting of, for example, powdered milk, rice, diapers, and medical supplies.

On the other hand, Israel, which says that the"small amount of humanitarian aid on board that was not consumed by the celebrities will be transferred to Gaza through proper humanitarian channels," considers it a "flotilla of hatred against Israel" and a "media provocation by activists, including those who did not condemn the October 7 terrorist attack." It cites, for example, Brazilian Thiago Ávila, who expressed his admiration for Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and attended his funeral in Beirut.

"They came to make noise in the world against Israel"

"They didn't really come to help the people of Gaza, but rather to raise global awareness against Israel as a publicity stunt," the Israeli authorities charge, clarifying that there are traditional channels for delivering humanitarian aid to Gazans. They also add that the 2011 UN Palmer Report indicates that the naval blockade of Gaza to prevent the smuggling of missiles and other weapons to Hamas is legal under international law.

Among the activists are Spaniard Sergio Toribio and French MEP Rima Hassan of Palestinian origin. In February, she landed at Ben Gurion Airport but was denied entry to Israel for a visit to the West Bank after calling for a boycott of Israel. Israeli media reports that Hassan said her country has no right to defend itself while Hamas's actions are legitimate.

Although the person with the highest media profile is Greta Thunberg. Her attempt to reach Gaza is one of her main acts of protest since she became one of the most well-known and vocal voices against Israel.

Spanish activist Sergio Toribio has called on"friends and family" to "put pressure" on the Spanish government to secure his release "as soon as possible," according to a pre-interception recording released by the Freedom Flotilla coalition."My name is Sergio Toribio, from Spain. If you are watching this video, we have been intercepted at sea and I have been kidnapped by the Israeli occupation forces or those of a country complicit in Israel's genocide of Palestinians. I am calling on all my comrades, friends and family to put pressure on the Spanish government to demand my release as soon as possible," he said in a message similar to that of other activists recorded hours before their boat was diverted to Ashdod.

Hamas applauded the activists' actions and described the seizure of the ship as"state terrorism."

While the military offensive continues in the Gaza Strip after 612 days with only two ceasefire periods (the last week of November 2023 and from January to March), negotiations for a new truce agreement and the return of hostages still in captivity (55, of which at least 20 are alive) have not shown progress, although the main mediator, the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff, has assured that he remains optimistic. The big question is whether he will present in the coming days a new proposal for 60 days of calm and the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for 10 live hostages and 18 bodies of those kidnapped, after the previous one was rejected two weeks ago by Hamas for not including an Israeli commitment to a permanent truce.