UPDATE (18.06.2025) On 16 June, French journalist Yanis Mhamdi was released and extradited to Jordan , he said in a post on X.
French journalists Omar Faiad and Yanis Mhamdi, who were on board the Madleen vessel, were arbitrarily arrested by Israeli authorities when the ship was intercepted on 8 June in international waters as it approached the shores of Gaza. While Faiad was released 24 hours after signing a series of documents, Mhamdi is still being held in custody. The International and the European Federation of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) demand that journalists are not forced to sign any documents to secure their release, as they were unfairly detained during the course of their work. The IFJ and the EFJ urge the Israeli authorities to immediately release Mhamdi.
French journalists Omar Faiad, who was working for the Al Jazeera Network, and Yanis Mhamdi, who was working for the French news outlet Blast, were on board the Madleen ship that attempted to deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged Gaza Strip. Both journalists, who were covering the Madleen mission, were arbitrarily arrested during the course of their work.
Faiad arrived in Paris on 10 June after being deported by Israeli authorities. To secure his release, he had to sign a series of documents, including a ban on entering Israeli territory and an acknowledgment of the illegality of the Madleen humanitarian mission, according to Faiad’s account.
On 9 June, the Israeli Foreign Minister said on X that those who refuse to sign deportation documents will be brought before a judiciary authority.
As reported by his employer Blast, Mhamdi refused to sign the documents and remains in Israeli custody.
“We strongly condemn the arbitrary arrest of journalists Omar Faiad and Yanis Mhamdi, who were carrying out their journalistic duty of informing the public and urge the Israeli authorities to immediately release Mhamdi. No journalist should be forced to sign any document to secure their release, especially when they have been arbitrarily arrested, ” said the IFJ and the EFJ in a joint statement.
Source: EFJ
