Israel has ordered its military to prevent a humanitarian ship carrying activists including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg from reaching Gaza to break the blockade, ABNA and AFP reported on June 8.

Defence Minister Israel Katz instructed the military to stop the Madleen flotilla, calling the activists "Hamas propaganda mouthpieces" and warning them to "turn back because you will not reach Gaza".

The Madleen, operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, left Italy on June 1 carrying 12 activists from Britain, France, Sweden, Germany, Brazil, Turkey, Spain and the Netherlands, aiming to deliver aid and challenge the Israeli naval blockade.

European Parliament member Rima Hassan, aboard the vessel, said more than 200 European lawmakers signed an open letter calling for Israel to allow the ship to reach Gaza with its humanitarian cargo.

Katz said Israel would not allow anyone to break the naval blockade aimed at preventing weapons reaching Hamas, which he described as "a murderous terrorist group holding our hostages and committing war crimes".

The ship was expected to reach Gaza waters on Monday with international media coverage planned for any confrontation with Israeli forces.

Thunberg said in an audio message to The Sunday Times: "We are fully aware of the dangers of our mission and we accept these dangers willingly. But we believe that silence in the face of genocide, injustice and the starvation of millions is a much greater danger."

Israeli attacks on June 8 killed at least 10 Palestinians, including five civilians heading to an aid distribution centre west of Rafah who were shot by Israeli forces around 6:00am, according to Gaza's civil defence agency.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed group running distribution sites, said it had distributed more than one million meals, though the UN refuses to work with the organisation citing concerns over its practices and neutrality.

The war began with Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that killed 1,218 people, mostly civilians, whilst Gaza's health ministry said the Palestinian death toll had reached 54,880, the majority civilians.