French doctor and activist Baptiste André has described the moment the Israeli military intercepted the Gaza-bound humanitarian ship Madleen in international waters.
Speaking to The New Arab's Arabic edition shortly after returning to Paris, André said the crew was subject to a "harsh and unlawful" detention carried out by Israeli commandos during the latest Freedom Flotilla mission aimed at breaking the blockade on Gaza.
The Madleen, part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, was intercepted in the early hours of Monday, more than 100 nautical miles from the Israeli coast.
"We were sailing legally, far from any national borders, when a heavily armed Israeli unit surrounded us," André said. He also described a force of around 80 commandos backed by warships who boarded the vessel and took control by force.
André and his fellow crew members were locked in the ship's lower compartment for 18 hours with limited food and water before being taken to the port of Ashdod and then to a detention centre near Ben Gurion Airport.
"They kept us under constant surveillance, denied us sleep, and refused to tell us where we were being held or for how long," he added.
The crew was subjected to searches by dogs, transported in sealed buses, and reportedly treated with hostility. André said Palestinian lawyers representing the detainees were physically mistreated and denied proper access to their clients.
Israeli authorities presented the detainees with "deportation documents" falsely stating they had entered Israel illegally. André said: "That’s completely untrue. We were kidnapped in international waters and taken by force into Israel."
He and eight others refused to sign the document. The group, including activists from Germany, Turkey, Brazil, and France, remain detained.
Among them is French MEP Rima Hassan. Her legal team released a statement to Al Araby Al-Jadeed, calling the incident "a grave breach of international law" and an "alarming precedent" for the detention of a European lawmaker with diplomatic immunity. The statement urged the EU to hold Israel accountable and take immediate action to release the remaining detainees.
During the mission, the Madleen's crew also rescued four African migrants stranded at sea for five days after fleeing Libyan authorities. "We saved their lives," André said, "and later handed them over to Greek authorities."
He praised supporters by saying that they had played a crucial role in sustaining their morale and securing his release. "We’re alive because of that solidarity,” he said. "But others are still imprisoned. Think of them. Act for them."