Spain’s National Court has opened a criminal investigation into Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Israel Katz and several senior military officers for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. The decision, issued by Judge Antonio Piña of the court’s Central Investigative Chamber No. 6, initiates preliminary proceedings and asks the public prosecutor to confirm the court’s competence in the matter. The probe centres on the 1 June interception of the Madleen, an 18-metre humanitarian vessel that was sailing in international waters toward Gaza with aid supplied by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. Court filings accuse Israeli commandos of using drones, tear gas and other force to board the ship, detain its 12 civilian passengers and tow the vessel to Israel. Those held reportedly included Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, French-Palestinian rights advocate Rima Hassan and Spanish national Sergio Toribio, who filed the complaint together with the Committee for Solidarity with the Arab Cause. Brought under Spain’s doctrine of universal jurisdiction, the case alleges violations of international humanitarian law, arbitrary detention and obstruction of humanitarian assistance. If the inquiry leads to formal charges, the court could request international arrest warrants that would further limit Netanyahu’s and other officials’ ability to travel within Europe, where many states are parties to the Rome Statute governing the International Criminal Court. The Spanish proceedings follow separate ICC arrest warrants issued earlier this year and reignite debate over European states’ obligations after France, Italy and Greece recently allowed an aircraft carrying Netanyahu to transit their airspace without intervention.