GRETA Thunberg has arrived on dry land and is to likely be deported after Israel seized the “Freedom Flotilla” stunt ship.
The climate campaigner, 22, alongside 11 other activists on board, is expected to appear in court on Tuesday morning having been taken to the Israeli port city of Ashdod.
IsraelMFAGreta Thunberg has arrived on dry land[/caption]
InstagramGreta Thunberg posted on social media that she had been kidnapped by the Israeli military[/caption]
Freedom Flotilla CoalitionA photo posted on Telegram purportedly showing activists with their hands up on board the Madleen[/caption]
Israel’s Foreign Ministry confirmed on X: “The ‘Selfie Yacht’ docked at Ashdod Port a short while ago.
“The passengers are currently undergoing medical examinations to ensure they are in good health.”
But lawyer Nariman Shehade Zoabi said they haven’t been able to contact the activists yet.
She told Expressen: “We demand information about the whereabouts of our clients and the right to meet them.”
Lawyer Zoabi added that Greta and the others would be taken to a “Givon prison” near the town Ramle where “illegal immigrants are detained” and there is a “court that can quickly decide on deportation”.
She is waiting in Ashdod with five others, and explained that the process of deportation could be fast.
Zoabi said: “Israel has no interest in detaining them and they themselves do not want to stay in the country.”
Israel accused the group who were aboard the boat of supporting Hamas terrorists who detonated Middle East mayhem by massacring 1,200 and kidnapping 251 hostages.
And all of those detained will be made to watch a screening of video footage showing innocents including children being slaughter by Hamas savages during the attacks.
The “selfie yacht” operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition was said to be “safely making its way to the shores of Israel”, Israel’s Foreign Minsitry said.
All passengers were safe and unharmed and activists handed sandwiches and water before the vessel docked at the southern Israeli port of Ashdod.
The boat was carrying a “tiny amount of aid” on board – which will be sent to Gaza.
Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said that he has instructed the Israeli Defence Forces to screen footage of the 7 October attacks as soon as they arrive.
The disturbing footage – titled “Bearing Witness” – shows innocent people being massacred and mutilated.
And all the footage was taken from the Hamas terrorists’ bodycams as they filmed their massacre.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said early on Monday that Israeli forces had boarded the charity vessel.
Shortly before the FFC statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry posted a video on X showing the Israeli Navy communicating with the Madleen over a loudspeaker, urging it to change course.
“The maritime zone off the coast of Gaza is closed to naval traffic as part of a legal naval blockade,” a soldier said.
Greta Thunberg is offered a sandwich by an Israeli soldier
The Madleen began its journey to deliver aid to Gaza last Sunday but could be facing Israeli fury upon its arrival
ReutersThunberg sits aboard the aid ship Madleen, which left the Italian port of Catania on June 1 to travel to Gaza[/caption]
GettyGaza has been hammered by the IDF as it aims to wipe out Hamas[/caption]
“If you wish to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, you are able to do so through the (Israeli) port of Ashdod.”
The campaigners had said they are hoping to “break the siege” and raise “international awareness” of the humanitarian crisis on the Gaza Strip.
But Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant issued a warning as the vessel entered the final stretch of its journey, saying: “You should turn back – because you will not reach Gaza.”
Thunberg, 22, has posted on social media with a Palestine flag and wearing a keffiyeh scarf while on the journey.
Travelling alongside her is Rima Hassan, a French member of the European parliament of Palestinian descent.
She has previously been barred from entering Israel due to her outspoken criticism of the country’s policies towards Palestinians.
Organisers claim the voyage is “a non-violent, direct action to challenge Israel’s illegal siege” – and is carrying essential supplies to a population at risk of famine.
Israel imposed a near-total blockade on Gaza in late 2023, following Hamas’s horror massacre on southern Israel on October 7.
Though some limited aid has been allowed in since last month, aid agencies claim it is nowhere near enough.
Ahead of the journey, Thunberg said through tears: “We are doing this because, no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying.
“Because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity.”
CONTROVERSIAL CREW
The flotilla’s latest voyage follows a failed attempt in May, when another of its vessels was struck by two drones in international waters off Malta.
The group accused Israel of being behind the attack.
Despite the risks, activists aboard the Madleen have said they plan to enter Gaza’s territorial waters as early as Sunday.
The vessel’s controversial crew includes figures who have openly supported terrorist organizations and have made inflammatory public statements.
Brazilian activist Thiago Avila attended the funeral of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, calling the terrorist a “beloved” leader and a “martyr”.
GettyThunberg with part of the crew of the ship headed to the Strip[/caption]
Thiago Ávila (L) hailed the former leader of terrorist group Hezbollah
Yasemin Acar is among the extremist crew
Avila said he was “very honoured” and “very happy” to attend, and described the funeral as something that “amazed him”.
He wrote that Nasrallah was an “important figure” who “inspired people all over the world”.
Also on board was Yasemin Acar from Berlin, who reportedly danced as Iranian rockets rained down on Israel and once told a white woman at a protest: “You’re a white person, you shouldn’t tell us what to do.”
French journalist Omar Faiad, of Al-Jazeera, sparked outrage for comparing the IDF to Nazis.
On X, he wrote: “The Israeli army resembles the Nazi army,” and claimed: “Israel is committing a new Holocaust in Gaza.”
Rima Hassan, meanwhile, previously tweeted: “Kfir, Ariel, and Shiri Bibas were killed by an Israeli attack,” despite Hamas being responsible for their abduction and deaths.
She was also seen at a protest where demonstrators chanted: “We die for jihad.”
And it included included a London-based Palestinian named in Parliament in 2023 as being a London-based Hamas operative.
Zaher Birawi was at the launch of the Madleen and live streamed from the dock in Greece and is chair of the International Committee to Break the siege of Gaza.
Birawi, 62, has been photographed with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and runs UK-registered charity, Education Aid for Palestinians, which has raised more than £3 million since 2017.
Irish Game of Thrones star Liam Cunningham was also on the boat.
Greta Thunberg – Swedish climate activist
Rima Hassan – French-Palestinian MEP
Yasemin Acar – German activist
Thiago Avila – Brazilian activist
Omar Faiad – French journalist
Pascal Maurieras – French activist
Yanis Mhamdi – French reporter
Suayb Ordu – Turkish activist
Sergio Toribio – Spanish activist
Marco van Rennes – Dutch activist
Reva Viard – French activist
Liam Cunningham – Irish Game of Thrones actor
Baptiste Andre – French Physician