Greta Thunberg Intercepted in a Ship by Israel Carrying Aid to Gaza

“Connection was lost” with Madleen, the group reported on the Telegram app. The organization published a photograph, as pictured below, showing people wearing life jackets sitting with their hands raised. The information could not be independently verified.  Shortly afterward, the Israeli Foreign Ministry reported that the ship was “sailing safely toward the shores of Israel,” that the passengers were “unharmed,” and that they were expected to be “repatriated to their countries of origin.” Climate activist Greta Thunberg is among those on board the vessel, which is believed to have been intercepted off the coast of Egypt. 

The Israeli Foreign Ministry referred to the Madleen as a “celebrity selfie yacht” and posted photos and videos on social media of Freedom Flotilla activists wearing life jackets and receiving food and water.  The ministry criticized the group, claiming that they “attempted to stage a media provocation with the sole purpose of gaining notoriety, which involved less than a truckload of aid.”  “There are ways to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip; it’s not about Instagram selfies,” he said.  The Israeli Foreign Ministry said earlier that the Navy had instructed the ship to change course “due to its approach to a restricted area.”  Israel says the blockade is necessary to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas militants in Gaza.

Break the Siege

The Freedom Flotilla said the vessel, which set sail from Sicily on Sunday, June 1, was carrying humanitarian aid and had “prepared for the possibility of an Israeli attack.”  Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that the ship must turn around and that Israel would act against any attempt to break the blockade.  In a post on X this Sunday, Katz wrote:  “I have instructed the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] to act and prevent the ‘Madleen’, pictured below, flotilla of hate from reaching the shores of Gaza, and to take all necessary measures to achieve this.”  Katz claims that the purpose of the Israeli blockade, in place since 2007, is to “prevent the transfer of weapons to Hamas” and that it is essential for Israel’s security as it seeks to destroy the group. 

The organization maintains that the maritime blockade is illegal, and called Katz’s statement an example of Israel threatening the illegal use of force against civilians and “trying to justify that violence with slander.”  “We will not be intimidated. The world is watching,” said Hay Sha Wiya, press spokeswoman for the Flotilla.  “The Madleen is a civilian vessel, unarmed and sailing in international waters, carrying humanitarian aid and human rights defenders from around the world… Israel has no right to obstruct our efforts to reach Gaza.”  According to the group, Madleen was carrying a symbolic amount of aid, including rice and baby formula.  On board are citizens of Brazil, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Türkiye. 

In 2010, Israeli commandos killed 10 people when they boarded the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, which was leading a flotilla of aid destined for Gaza.  Israel recently allowed limited aid into Gaza after a three-month land blockade, prioritizing distribution through the Gaza Humanitarian Fund, backed by Israel and the United States but widely rejected by humanitarian groups.  UN human rights Chief Volker Türk said last week that Palestinians face “the grimmest choice: starve to death or risk being killed while trying to access the scarce food available.”  It has been nearly 20 months since Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to the unprecedented Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.  Since then, at least 54,880 people have died in Gaza, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.