Madeleine is the 36th ship within the Freedom Fleet Alliance, which aims to break the Israeli siege imposed on the Gaza Strip since 2007. It sailed in early June 2025 from the Italian port of Catania towards the Strip, with 12 activists of multiple nationalities, in addition to humanitarian assistance that include food, medicine and medical equipment.
The ship was named after Madeleine Kallab, the first Palestinian girl to professional fishing in the Gaza Strip, and she lost her father and source of livelihood after the outbreak of the Israeli war in October 2023.
Ship 36
“Madeleine” is the 36th ship in the framework of the attempts of the Freedom Fleet coalition to break the siege imposed by the Israeli occupation authorities on the Gaza Strip since 2007.
The ship started on June 1, 2025 from the port of Catania on the Italian island of Sicily in the Mediterranean, heading to the Gaza Strip, loaded with humanitarian aid and international human rights defenders, defying the illegal blockade imposed by Israel on the Palestinians.
According to the alliance, the flight comes one month after the bombing of the Israeli drones “the global conscience ship” off the coast of Malta, and this highlights the dangerous nature of the mission to which the Madeleine ship was recruited.
The ship holds aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip, including infant formula, flour, rice, diapers, medical supplies and desalination equipment, in addition to industrial limbs for children.
According to international reports, 93% of the population of Gaza suffers from a severe food shortage as a result of the Israeli blockade and the comprehensive aggression on the Strip, which started on October 7, 2023, the perpetrator of massacres and systematic destruction of infrastructure, which included food, agriculture and fishing sources.
The coalition affirmed that Madeleine’s journey represents a peaceful act of civil resistance, noting that all volunteers on the ship are united by a common conviction that the Palestinian people deserve the same rights, freedom and dignity that the peoples of the world enjoy.
In a statement, the coalition called on governments to ensure the safe traffic of the ship and all humanitarian ships, and also invited activists to reject silence and take a position for the Gaza Strip.
The length of the ship Madeleine is about 18 meters, and the distance it travels to reach the sector is estimated at about 1250 miles (i.e. two thousand kilometers).
Naming
According to the Freedom Flotilla alliance, the ship was named after “Madeleine Kalab”, which is the first Palestinian girl working in fishing in Gaza since 2014.
She was sailing to the borders of the Israeli naval blockade, hunting and selling fish on the market with the aim of supporting her family, and killing her father during the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023.
After the resumption of the Israeli aggression on Gaza in March 2025, Madeleine boats and their husband were destroyed, along with a warehouse they were using to store hunting tools, which led to the loss of their source of livelihood.
Madeleine learned about the ship from one of her activists in Ireland, who told her that the goal of the trip is to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip, defying the Israeli siege, and activists were affected by her story, and decided to launch her name on the ship in honor of its steadfastness and struggle.
Activists on board the ship
The “Madeleine” ship has 10 activists and journalists on board, namely:
Greta Thonberg
She is a Swedish environmental activist born in 2003, known for her activity in the field of confronting climate change, and in 2018 established a movement called “Jum for the Future”, and decided to pressure decision makers to address the issue of climate change.
Before the general elections in 2018, 3 weeks were absent from the school, and she sat in front of the Swedish parliament, carrying a banner on which a “school strike for climate”. Although she started protesting on her own, the number of participants increased, and her story soon won.
Rima Hassan
The first French deputy of Palestinian origin in the European Parliament, was born in 1992 in the Nair Palestinian refugee camp near the city of Aleppo in Syria. She arrived in France when she was nine years old, and she obtained French citizenship in 2010.
The “Refugee Camps Observatory” was established with the aim of monitoring and analyzing the conditions of the camps and the displaced population, and the “Working Group for Palestine” also launched in the wake of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, which came after the “Al -Aqsa Flood” operation on October 7, 2023.
It was known for its contribution to highlighting the crimes committed by the Israeli occupation in the occupied Palestinian territories, especially in the European Parliament sessions.
Yasmine Akar
Activist in the defense of refugees and human rights, was born and raised in Germany, for parents of Kurdish origin. She started her 15 -aged activity, and cooperated with several organizations to help refugees stabilize Berlin.
Akar was known for her advocacy of the Palestinian cause, and her organization of mass demonstrations, campaigns and various events. She believes that “resistance is not an option but a lifestyle”, and she believes that instead of seeking peace, justice must be strived.
Batist André
A French physician specializing in internal medicine, working at the “Timon” university hospital in the city of Marseille, southern France, a hospital established in 1974.
Batist said in press statements that the Israeli position rejecting the arrival of the “Madeleine” ship to Gaza did not surprise him, and that it was an expected position from the beginning.
He emphasized that the participants are determined to reach their goal, which is to break the siege that has been set for years on the Gaza Strip by air and sea, and that they are proceeding with that despite the repeated Israeli threats.
Andre considered that one of the basic goals of this humanitarian task is to demand the cessation of the Israeli war on Gaza and the recognition of a Palestinian state.
He added, “We are counting on the support of the international community to continue this humanitarian mission, and we receive every day support and solidarity messages from all over the world, messages confirming the fairness of our cause and the need to lift the siege on the Gaza Strip.”
Thiago Avila
A Brazilian activist specializing in international and environmental affairs, the position of Freedom Flotant, Brazil Branch, is a member of the Guidance Committee for the Freedom Flotillary Alliance.
His struggle for the Palestinian issue was 18 years old, visited Palestine and its neighboring countries, and produced awareness content about the issue published on social media.
Avila participated in solidarity committees inside Brazil, and contributed to organizing demonstrations in several regions, as well as lectures and seminars on the Palestinian issue across the world.
He also worked to support the moves in order to create a permanent humanitarian corridor to the Gaza Strip to end the state of starvation, and participated in consultations to pressure in order to open the Rafah crossing.
Omar Fayyad
Announcer and correspondent of Al -Jazeera directly. He joined Al -Jazeera Media Network in 2014, and participated in the stages of the production of the “Hashtag” program, which is the first direct interactive program of its kind. He also submitted direct reports from many countries, and produced a number of video reports.
Pascal Morrras
A French activist was a member of the “Freedom” ship of the Freedom Fleet to Gaza, which was held by the Israeli occupation authorities in international waters on July 29, 2018 and arrested all those on board, and took it and two other legs to the port of Ashdod.
Yannis Muhammadi
A French journalist worked as a director on the “Plast” independent media platform, and directed the documentary “Netanyahu: Portrait is a war criminal”, which was shown in the cinemas in France in 2024. He also filmed a film in the West Bank entitled “Alice on the land of the settlers.”
Muhammadi was known for dealing with topics that other media overlooks and shed light on complex political and social issues.
Shuaib Erdo
A Turkish activist from the city of Bursa, works in Germany, is known for his great interest in nature and arts, and participated with his wife in social voluntary programs in support of Palestine.
He confirmed in a press interview that he met the Freedom Fleet through his wife, and that his motive for the rise of the “Madeleine” ship is a human motive, adding, “Every time I grab my phone, I see the bodies of children torn, and I cannot bear the continuation of this way. What we do is a human duty.”
Sergio Toribio
A Spanish activist and member of the NGO “Cybrid”, which is concerned with preserving the marine environment known as whale hunting. Toribio was known as a veteran protest organizer.
Mark van Rin
A Dutch naval engineer born in 1999, who has experience in operating high -speed rubber boats used by NGOs in civil rights missions.
Riva Vieard
A French environmental activist, participated in the Freedom Flotillary Alliance campaign. You see that “the struggle is not against anything, but for life,” and believes that “Palestine is subject to a completely different treatment from the rest of the world.”
“The law is no longer itself, nor the human perception as it is, nor the value of life as it is,” says Riva.
