Once again, the so-called “most moral army in the world” flexes its muscle, not against a military threat or armed combatants, but against a small humanitarian vessel brimming with conscience and compassion.

The Madleen carried no missiles, no drones, only sacks of rice, baby formula, and prosthetic limbs intended for Gaza’s war-wounded. Yet in the official Israeli narrative, this peaceful mission was cast as a “political provocation” and an “illegal operation.”

On board were a sitting Member of the European Parliament, internationally recognised environmental activists, respected journalists, and representatives of humanitarian organisations. Still, the Israeli navy intercepted the vessel in international waters, detained all on board, and severed their communication with the outside world, an act more reminiscent of medieval piracy than of a state that claims to uphold international law.

The question then arises: who is truly breaking the law? Is it the human rights defenders who sought to deliver aid to a population besieged, starved, and threatened with annihilation for over seventeen years? Or, is........

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