Alleged Hamas operative Zaher Birawi has resurfaced as a central figure in the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the group behind the Gaza aid vessel Madleen, which was intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters on Monday. The Israeli Defense Forces detained all 12 activists onboard and have begun deportation procedures, including for Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
Birawi, a Palestinian-British journalist, describes himself as a founding member of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition and attended the vessel’s launch from Sicily, which he livestreamed. British newspaper The Telegraph identified Birawi’s key involvement in the operation and revisited longstanding accusations regarding his alleged ties to Hamas.
Israel officially designated Birawi as a Hamas operative in 2013 and later labeled the EuroPal Forum—where he serves as chairman—as a terror organization in 2021. Both the Israeli Knesset and the UK Parliament have publicly discussed his alleged affiliations.
“He is listed as a trustee of a UK-registered charity, Education Aid for Palestinians, and publicly available video shows him hosting a 2019 event in London titled Understanding Hamas,” British Labour MP Christian Wakeford told the House of Commons in October 2023.
Photographs also show Birawi alongside former Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza in July 2024. Despite these links, Birawi continues to reject all allegations of wrongdoing or involvement in terrorism-related activity.
In 2021, Birawi won a legal case against a financial database that mistakenly listed him as connected to terrorism. Following the ruling, he stated, “There has never been any legal sentence passed against me by any official authority in any state anywhere in the world, and that never have I been found to have been involved in any illegal acts which could be deemed within the scope of terrorism crimes.”
Israel maintains that the Madleen mission was another propaganda attempt orchestrated under the guise of humanitarian aid. The controversy surrounding Birawi’s role has reignited scrutiny over who funds and organizes such flotillas and whether legitimate humanitarian aims are being overshadowed by operatives with political motives.
