Release the Madleen crew immediately, end Israel’s genocide now!
The Palestine Coalition condemns in the strongest terms Israel’s unlawful hijacking of the Madleen, a ‘Freedom Flotilla’ boat flying under a British flag, and its detention of the 12 civilians on board.
The civilians on board the Madleen were attempting to deliver aid to the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, to symbolically break Israel’s immoral and illegal siege of nearly two decades. Over the past 20 months, Israel’s siege has created the conditions for the complete isolation of millions of people in Gaza and for Israel to use starvation as a weapon as part of the most horrifically violent genocide. Since March, Israel has completely denied access for food and aid to Palestinians in Gaza and in the past week has exploited their hunger and desperation to lure them to ‘distribution centres’ where they have been shot and killed in large numbers.
The Freedom Flotilla activists, including climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and French MEP Rima Hassan, were compelled to act because of the absolute failure of the international community to end the siege. The British government has so far done nothing more than issue weak statements in the face of Israel’s genocide.
We call on the British government to condemn the interception of the Madleen, which was flying under a British flag. The British government should urgently address the issues which the Madleen was responding to: the crimes against humanity committed by Israel against the Palestinian people, including starvation and genocide, the illegal blockage on the Gaza Strip, and Israel’s occupation and apartheid control over the Palestinian people.
Britain must:
The crew on the Madleen must be released immediately. Israel’s genocide in Gaza must be stopped now.
Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Palestinian Forum in Britain
Friends of Al-Aqsa
Stop the War Coalition
Muslim Association of Britain
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament