BERLIN — An international court will hold a hearing next month on the Netherlands' bid to force Russia to release a Greenpeace protest ship and the activists who were on board.

The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, based in the German city of Hamburg, said Friday that a public hearing on the "Arctic Sunrise" case will be held Nov. 6. A ruling is expected a few weeks later.

The 28 Greenpeace activists, a Russian photographer and a British videographer have been held since their ship, the "Arctic Sunrise," was seized by the Russian coast guard after a protest near a Gazprom-owned oil rig Sept. 18.