Israel says Gaza-bound activist boat carrying Greta Thunberg redirected
Activist Greta Thunberg sits aboard the aid ship Madleen, which left the Italian port of Catania on Jun 1 to travel to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, in this picture released on Jun 2, 2025 on social media. (File photo: Freedom Flotilla Coalition via REUTERS)
CAIRO: Israel said it diverted a Gaza-bound boat on Monday (Jun 9) after the activists onboard, including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg, said they were intercepted as they sought to provide relief to the blockaded Palestinian territory.
The Madleen departed from Italy on Jun 1 to bring awareness to food shortages in Gaza, which the United Nations (UN) has referred to as the "hungriest place on Earth", with its entire population at risk of famine.
The Israeli government had directed its forces to stop the "celebrities yacht" from reaching Gaza.
AFP lost contact with the activists onboard the Madleen early Monday morning after the organisers said alarms sounded and life jackets were being prepared.
"If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters," Thunberg said in a pre-recorded video shared by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the activist group operating the vessel.
In a statement, the coalition said the Israeli military intercepted the Madleen around 3.02 am CET (9.02am, Singapore time) just off the coast of Gaza.
Israel's foreign ministry said it had redirected the boat towards Israeli shores and expected those onboard to return to their home countries.
"All the passengers of the 'selfie yacht' are safe and unharmed. They were provided with sandwiches and water," the ministry posted on X.
"The tiny amount of aid that was on the yacht and not consumed by the 'celebrities' will be transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels," the ministry added.
Among the 12-strong crew are Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament.
Israel is facing mounting international pressure to allow more aid into Gaza, after a more than two-month total blockade led to widespread shortages of food and basic supplies.
It has recently started working with the newly formed US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) to distribute aid via a handful of centres in south and central Gaza.
But humanitarian agencies have criticised the GHF and the UN refuses to work with it, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality.
Dozens of people have been killed near GHF distribution points since late May, according to Gaza's civil defence agency.
It said Israeli attacks killed at least 10 people on Sunday, including five civilians hit by gunfire near an aid distribution centre.
Israel has imposed a naval blockade on the coastal enclave after Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007.
The blockade has remained in place through multiple conflicts, including the current war, which began after a Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023, that killed more than 1,200 people, according to an Israeli tally.
Gaza's health ministry says over 54,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel's military campaign. The United Nations has warned that most of Gaza's more than 2 million residents are facing famine.
The Israeli government says the blockade is essential to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas.
