Israeli forces halt aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and detain activists

Israeli forces seized a Gaza-bound aid boat and detained Greta Thunberg and other activists who were on board, enforcing a longstanding blockade of the Palestinian territory that has been tightened during the Israel-Hamas war.

The activists had set out to protest Israel’s ongoing military campaign in the Gaza Strip, which is among the deadliest and most destructive since the Second World War, and its restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid, both of which have put the territory of around two million Palestinians at risk of famine.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which had organised the voyage, said that the activists were “kidnapped by Israeli forces” while trying to deliver desperately needed aid to the territory.

“The ship was unlawfully boarded, its unarmed civilian crew abducted, and its life-saving cargo — including baby formula, food and medical supplies — confiscated,” it said in a statement.

It said the ship was seized in international waters about 200 kilometres (120 miles) from Gaza.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry portrayed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying in an X post that “the ‘selfie yacht’ of the ‘celebrities’ is safely making its way to the shores of Israel”.

It said the activists would return to their home countries and the aid would be sent to Gaza through established channels.

It circulated footage of what appeared to be Israeli military personnel handing out sandwiches and water to the activists, who were wearing orange life vests.

Lieutenant colonel Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli military spokesperson, said that the ship was still en route to Israel around midday on Monday.

It was expected to dock at the port of Ashdod.

Afterwards, the activists were expected to be held at a detention facility in the Israeli city of Ramle before being deported, according to Adalah, a legal rights group representing the activists.

– Weeklong voyage

Ms Thunberg, a climate campaigner, was among 12 activists aboard the Madleen, which set sail from Sicily a week ago.

Along the way, it had stopped on Thursday to rescue four migrants who had jumped overboard to avoid being detained by the Libyan coast guard.

“I urge all my friends, family and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible,” Ms Thunberg said in a pre-recorded message released after the ship was halted.

Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, was also among the volunteers on board.

She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israeli policies toward the Palestinians.

She was among six French citizens aboard the boat. French President Emmanuel Macron asked Israel to allow them to return to France as soon as possible, his office said in a statement.

Swedish foreign minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said in Stockholm that the crew and passengers of the Madleen were aware of the risks of the campaign, and that her ministry has advised against travel to Gaza for a decade and people who disregard that advice have a clear personal responsibility, Swedish news agency TT reported.

She said the ministry’s current assessment is that no one onboard is in danger and there is no need for consular support at present.

Adalah, the rights group, said that Israel had “no legal authority” to take over the ship, because it was in international waters and it was headed not to Israel but to the “territorial waters of the state of Palestine.”

An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group’s vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta, organisers said.

The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.