Israel’s military has been ordered to show Greta Thunberg footage of Hamas’s Oct 7 2023 attack on southern Israel.

Israel Katz, the defence minister, on Monday congratulated the IDF for its interception of an aid boat carrying Ms Thunberg and 11 other activists before it could reach Gaza.

After confirming the passengers would be deported back to their home countries once the boat reached the Israeli port of Ashdod, he said he had instructed troops to “show the flotilla passengers the video of the horrors of the October 7 massacre”.

Mr Katz said he wanted them to “see exactly who the Hamas terrorist organisation they came to support and for whom they work is, what atrocities they committed against women, the elderly, and children, and against whom Israel is fighting to defend itself”.

After the boat, called Madleen, was intercepted, Ms Thunberg said in a pre-recorded video that she had been “kidnapped” by “Israeli occupation forces” but was later pictured smiling as soldiers handed out sandwiches and bottles of water.

Greta Thunberg deported, Israel says, after Gaza aid boat intercepted

10 June 2025 Share Save Jaroslav Lukiv & David Gritten BBC News Share Save

Israel ”did an illegal act by kidnapping us,” says Greta Thunberg

Israel says it has deported Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg, a day after the Gaza-bound aid boat she and 11 other people were on was intercepted by Israeli forces in the Mediterranean. Thunberg departed Tel Aviv on Tuesday morning on a flight to France after she agreed to be deported, the Israeli foreign ministry said. Upon arriving at an airport in Paris, Thunberg accused Israel of illegally kidnapping her and other activists on the boat while they were in international waters. France said five of the six French citizens detained alongside her had refused to sign their deportation orders and would now be subject to judicial proceedings.

Reuters Thunberg arrives in Paris

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), the activist group operating the yacht The Madleen, has demanded the immediate release of everyone detained. The vessel was intercepted early on Monday while the activists tried to deliver a “symbolic” amount of aid to Gaza in defiance of Israel’s maritime blockade and highlight the humanitarian crisis there. The Israeli foreign ministry dismissed it as a “selfie yacht”, and announced in a post on X on Monday night that the passengers had been transferred to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport following the vessel’s arrival at the port of Ashdod on Monday night. “Those who refuse to sign deportation documents and leave Israel will be brought before a judicial authority, in accordance with Israeli law, to authorize their deportation,” it said. On Tuesday morning, the ministry said Thunberg had “just departed Israel on a flight to Sweden (via France)”, and posted a photo of her sitting on a plane. Speaking to reporters at Charles de Gaulle airport, Thunberg said Israel had committed “an illegal act by kidnapping us on international waters and against our will, bringing us to Israel, keeping us in the bottom of the boat, not letting us getting out and so on”. She added: “But that is not the real story here, the real story is that there is a genocide going on in Gaza, and a systematic starvation following the siege and blockade now, which is leading to food, medicine, water – that are desperately needed to get into Gaza – is prevented from doing so.” The Israeli foreign ministry has insisted the blockade was “consistent with international law”, and that unauthorised attempts to breach it were “dangerous, unlawful, and undermine ongoing humanitarian efforts”. Asked why she was free while others were still detained, Thunberg said it was “a bit unclear”. She said she and some others had signed a document saying they wanted to go back as soon as they could, but did not accept they had entered the country illegally, but others hadn’t signed this document. She added she had been unable to say goodbye to fellow activists before her deportation, and was unsure what was happening to them. “I’m very worried about them,” she said. France’s Foreign Minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, earlier wrote on X: “Our consul was able to see the six French nationals arrested by the Israeli authorities last night.” “One of them has agreed to leave voluntarily and should return today. The other five will be subject to forced deportation proceedings.” Barrot did not identify them, but the six French nationals include MEP Rima Hassan and two journalists, Omar Faiad of Qatar-based Al Jazeera and Yanis Mhamdi of online publication Blast, who Reporters Without Borders said were documenting the Madleen’s journey. As well as France and Sweden, citizens of Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Turkey were on board the vessel. The FFC confirmed in a statement on Monday night that all 12 had reached Ashdod and that it expected any who refused to be deported to be transferred to a detention facility in Ramle, near Tel Aviv. “We continue to demand the immediate release of all volunteers and the return of the stolen aid. Their kidnapping is unlawful and a violation of international law,” it added. Israel’s foreign ministry said the aid, which includes baby formula and medicine, would be transferred to Gaza “through real humanitarian channels”.

Watch: Moment Israeli forces board Gaza aid boat

The FFC said the Madleen was intercepted by the Israeli military inside international waters about 185km (115 miles) west of Gaza early on Monday. According to the group, the vessel was surrounded by quadcopter drones, sprayed with a “white irritant substance”, and had its communications jammed. Video footage released by the group showed the passengers sitting down with their hands raised as Israeli forces boarded. It also posted a pre-recorded clip showing Thunberg saying: “If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by Israeli occupational forces or forces that support Israel.” “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.” The foreign ministry later said all the passengers were “safe and unharmed”, and posted a video showing troops handing them food and water.

Greta Thunberg has been mocked for appearing to fake being handcuffed upon her arrival to France.

The Swedish activist was deported from Israel following a brief spat with local authorities this week. She and 11 others attempted to sail to Gaza to make a statement against Israel’s campaign, but were seized by Israeli authorities and quickly sent on their way.

Of the 12 activists on board the Madleen, which was carrying food and supplies for Gaza, four, including Thunberg, agreed to be deported immediately, while 11 of them have been banned from Israel for 100 years, the rights group that legally represents some of them said in a statement.

She walked with her arms swaying and then clasped them behind her back once the cameras were in sight.

The remaining eight were taken into custody after they refused to leave Israel voluntarily, and brought before a detention review tribunal on Tuesday, rights group Adalah said.

“The state asked the tribunal to keep the activists in custody until their deportation”, Adalah said, adding that under Israeli law, individuals under deportation orders can be held for 72 hours before forcible removal.

Israeli forces intercepted the boat, operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, in international waters on Monday and towed it to the port of Ashdod.

They then transferred them to Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, the foreign ministry said, from where Thunberg flew to France ahead of a scheduled flight to Sweden.

Taking to X, Meghan McCain – the daughter of the late Republican senator and presidential nominee, John McCain – shared footage of Thunberg aboard the plane.

“Putting her in the last seat in coach that doesn’t recline next to the toilet is my favourite thing today,” she captioned the clip.

On arrival at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, 22-year-old Thunberg accused Israel of “kidnapping us in international waters and taking us against our will to Israel”.

“This is yet another intentional violation of rights that is added to the list of countless other violations that Israel is committing,” she said.

Thunberg was deported by the Israeli government. Picture: Hugo Mathy/AFP

The activist told reporters upon her arrival to Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport it was ‘another intentional violation of rights’ by Israel. Picture: Hugo Mathy/AFP

Four French activists who were also aboard the Madleen were set to face an Israeli judge, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said.

He had earlier posted on X that five would face court action and only one would depart voluntarily.

Barrot told reporters that French diplomats had met with the six French nationals in Israel, and that French-Palestinian European MP Rima Hassan was among those who refused to leave voluntarily.

The activists, from France, Germany, Brazil, Turkey, Sweden, Spain and the Netherlands, aimed to deliver humanitarian aid and break the Israeli blockade on the Palestinian territory.

In what organisers called a “symbolic act”, hundreds of participants in a land convoy crossed the border into Libya from Tunisia with the aim of reaching Gaza, whose entire population the UN has warned is at risk of famine.

Thunberg refuses to watch Israel video

Thunberg and fellow aid activists had refused to view a video showing the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7, 2023, Israel’s Defence Minister has said.

Israel Katz had said the activists, whose ship was intercepted by the Israeli navy as it attempted to break a blockade on Gaza, would be made to watch the video.

However he said on Tuesday morning that when they found out what the film was about, “they refused to continue watching.”

“Greta [Thunberg] and her flotilla companions were taken into a room upon their arrival for a screening of the horror film of the October 7 massacre, and when they saw what it was about, they refused to continue watching,” Mr Katz said in a statement.

Israel has had the final word in its heavily publicised spat with Greta Thunberg, posting candid photos of her after she was briefly holed up in prison.

“The antisemitic flotilla members are turning a blind eye to the truth and have proven once again that they prefer the murderers to the murdered and continue to ignore the atrocities committed by Hamas against Jewish and Israeli women, adults, and children,” he added.

Thunberg being held in an Israeli prison for migrants ahead of a court hearing that could see her deported from the country.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry released a picture of Thunberg after soldiers boarded the UK-flagged ship Madleen, operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, on Monday.

On Tuesday, AEST, the foreign ministry said the vessel officials have mocked as the “selfie yacht” had now docked at Ashdod, in the nation’s south.

“The passengers are currently undergoing medical examinations to ensure they are in good health,” it said on X.

Greta Thunberg disembarks from the aid ship Madleen at Ashdod. Picture; X.

Thunberg, 22, was one of a dozen people on board the ship which left from Italy on June 1 bound for Gaza as part of an attempted aid delivery.

Her lawyer Nariman Shehade Zoabi told Swedish news outlet Expressen she was demanding to meet her client.

“Based on previous experiences, Greta Thunberg and the others will be taken to Givon prison near the town of Ramle,” she said.

“There, what are called illegal immigrants are detained and there is a court that can quickly decide on deportation.”

‘Strange person’: Trump’s gibe

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump ridiculed Thunberg in a White House press conference overnight, telling reporters the young woman should seek “anger management”.

“Well she’s a strange person – she’s a young, angry person,” he said.

“I don’t know if it’s real anger, it’s hard to believe actually, but I saw what happened.

“She’s certainly different. I think she needs to go to an anger management class, that’s my primary recommendation for her.”

Asked for his response to Thunberg’s claims she was she was “kidnapped” by the Israelis, he replied: “I think Israel has enough problems without kidnapping Greta Thunberg.”

Sweden’s blunt reply to plea for help

Sweden earlier rejected Thunberg’s request for help, with Foreign Affairs Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard telling media the activist’s supporters had been flooding consular hotlines.

“A great responsibility rests on those who choose to travel contrary to the advice given to a place,” she said outside the Swedish parliament.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry posted images of the Madleen crew after it was intercepted.

“It is quite dangerous to run a campaign that means that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ consular hotline is called down.

“The consequence is that Swedes in need abroad have to wait in line for far too long.

“If she needs consular support, we will do everything we can, just as we do with all Swedish citizens.”

The detainment of Thunberg and her crewmates sparked demonstrations in her homeland of Sweden and across Europe.

Forced to watch October 7 film

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has instructed the military to screen graphic footage of the October 7 Hamas attacks for Greta Thunberg’s group of activists, who attempted to break the blockade on Gaza this week.

The “Bearing Witness” video is a 43-minute compilation produced by the Israel Defense Forces spokesperson’s unit.

It includes raw, uncensored footage showing massacres and the mutilation of bodies during the attack.

Katz said the screening was intended to confront the activists with the reality of the violence committed by Hamas.

“It’s appropriate that Greta the antisemite and her Hamas-supporting friends should see exactly who is the terror group Hamas that they support and act on behalf of, what atrocious acts they carried out on women, the elderly and kids, and who Israel is fighting for its defence against,” Katz said in the statement.

Protesters clash with police during a demonstration in support of the Freedom Flotilla, outside the Foreign Office in London. Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images

He said that the video would be shown to the group upon their arrival in the port city of Ashdod, where their boat is being towed after Israeli forces took control as it neared the Gaza coast overnight.

Katz commended the soldiers for quickly securing the ship.

Video taken before the boarding suggests the activists planned to demonstrate passive resistance.

Israel has previously shown Bearing Witness to journalists, diplomats, and public figures in select private screenings around the world as part of its effort to draw international attention to the October 7 attacks.

‘Intercepted and kidnapped’

A prerecorded video has been released of Thunberg, one of the world’s best known climate activists, urging help after being “intercepted and kidnapped”.

Meanwhile, Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry has released a statement saying the ship was “safely making its way to the shores of Israel” and that “the passengers are expected to return to their home countries”.

Thunberg was on the ship with other activists, which was carrying food and other supplies for Palestinians in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip.

Israel had warned on Sunday its military would stop the ship before it even made it to shore.

Israel’s defence minister, who described the activists on board as “Hamas propaganda spokespeople”, told Thunberg to “turn back because you will not reach Gaza”.

“I have instructed the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) to act to prevent the Madleen flotilla from reaching the shores of Gaza — and to take whatever measures are necessary to that end,” Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement posted to X on Sunday, translated to English.

Greta Thunberg says she has been kidnapped on her aid voyage to Gaza. Picture: Freedom Flotilla Coalition / Greta Thunberg / Instagram

Thunberg speaking at the press conference on June 1 ahead of the ship Madleen leaving Catania, Italy. Picture: Fabrizio Villa/Getty Images

About 10.40am AEST on Monday, a prerecorded video was shared on Thunberg’s Instagram account by Freedom Flotilla Coalition.

“My name is Greta Thunberg and I am from Sweden. If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel,” she said.

“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.”

Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry released its own statement soon after.

“The ‘selfie yacht’ of the ‘celebrities’ is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. The passengers are expected to return to their home countries,” the ministry wrote on X.

The ministry accused Thunberg and the other activists of their “sole purpose” being “to gain publicity”, and claimed the ship had “less than a single truckload of aid”.

“More than 1200 aid trucks have entered Gaza from Israel within the past two weeks, and in addition, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has distributed close to 11 million meals directly to civilians in Gaza,” the statement said.

“There are ways to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip — they do not involve Instagram selfies.

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.”

Footage shared by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition from the ship before it was boarded by the Israeli military. Picture: Instagram / @gazafreedomflotilla

In the footage, those on the vessel could be heard preparing themselves. Picture: Instagram / @gazafreedomflotilla

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition shared footage from the ship before Israeli officials boarded.

The group wrote: “Moments ago, drones dropped unidentified chemicals on the Madleen. Immediately after, our peaceful volunteers were rammed and intercepted before Israeli forces boarded the vessel. We lost all contact with them seconds later.”

The UK-flagged ship called aimed to challenge the Israeli blockade, which has been in place for years, even before the Israel-Hamas war since October 2023.

Mr Katz said Israel would “act against any attempt to break the blockade”.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz shared this photo alongside his statement on X.

Thunberg had posted on Instagram soon after Mr Katz’s statement on Sunday.

“As we are sailing closer to Gaza with Israel saying they will not allow the boat to arrive with humanitarian aid (which would be a crime by them), it’s very important to keep in mind that this mission is not about us nor the boat,” she wrote.

“This is about the genocide, blockade and systematic oppression of Palestinians.

“People in Gaza don’t need anyone to come and save them, they need us to amplify and support their struggle for justice, that we end our complicity, put pressure and cut ties with those committing human rights violations. Keep all eyes on deck but above all, all eyes on Palestine and all oppressed people.”

The Madleen departing Catania, Italy on June 1. Picture: Fabrizio Villa/Getty Images

Organisers said Saturday the vessel had entered Egyptian waters and was nearing Gaza, where the war has entered its 21st month.

“We are not armed. There is only humanitarian aid,” European parliament member Rima Hassan told AFP from the boat, vowing to “stay mobilised until the last minute”.

The coalition said in a statement on X it expected “interception and an attack from Israel at any moment”, calling for protection from the governments of those on board, who are nationals of Germany, France, Brazil, Turkey, Sweden, Spain and the Netherlands.

‘Risked their lives’ for food

In Gaza, where the United Nations has repeatedly warned of famine, the civil defence agency said Israeli attacks killed at least 10 people on Sunday, including five civilians hit by gunfire near an aid distribution centre.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal and witnesses said the civilians had been heading to a site west of Rafah, in southern Gaza, run by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

The GHF has come under criticism from humanitarian agencies and the United Nations refuses to work with it, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality.

Witness Abdallah Nour al-Din told AFP that “people started gathering in the Al-Alam area of Rafah” in the early morning.

“After about an hour and a half, hundreds moved toward the site and the army opened fire,” he said.

The Israeli military said it fired on people who “continued advancing in a way that endangered the soldiers” despite warnings.

The bow of the Madleen ship features an illustration inspired by the Palestinian flag. Picture: Fabrizio Villa/Getty Images

The GHF said in a statement there had been no incidents “at any of our three sites” on Sunday.

It said it had distributed more than a million meals, including more than 600,000 through a trial of “direct to community distribution” via “community leaders”.

Outside Nasser Hospital, where the emergency workers brought the casualties, AFPTV footage showed mourners crying over bloodstained body bags.

“I can’t see you like this,” said Lin al-Daghma by her father’s body. She spoke of the struggle to access food aid after more than two months of a total Israeli blockade of Gaza, despite a recent easing.

Dozens of people have been killed near GHF distribution points since late May, according to the civil defence agency.

At a charity kitchen in Gaza City, displaced Palestinian Umm Ghassan told AFP she had been unable to collect aid from a GHF site “because there were so many people, and there was a lot of shooting. I was afraid to go in, but there were people who risked their lives for their children and families”.

– AFP

Israeli forces brought Handala, the latest aid flotilla to attempt to breach the IDF blockade of the Gaza Strip, into the port of Ashdod on Sunday, after seizing the vessel in international waters and detaining the crew.

Activists from the Freedom Flotilla Coalition had attempted to breach the naval blockade and bring a small quantity of humanitarian aid to the territory’s Palestinian residents, but were intercepted late Saturday and taken to Israel.

The Israeli legal rights group Adalah told AFP Sunday that its lawyers were in Ashdod and had demanded to speak to the 21-member international crew, among whom were two French parliamentarians and two Al Jazeera journalists.

“After 12 hours at sea, following the unlawful interception of the Handala, Israeli authorities confirmed the vessel’s arrival at Ashdod port,” said the group, which campaigns for the rights of Israel’s Arab population.

“The activists aboard the Handala were part of a peaceful civilian mission to break through Israel’s illegal blockade on Gaza,” it said.

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“The flotilla never entered Israeli territorial waters, nor was it intended to do so; it was headed toward the territorial waters of the State of Palestine, as recognized under international law,” Adalah added. “Israel has no legal jurisdiction or authority over the international waters in which the vessel was sailing.”

After several hours of campaigning, Adalah said Sunday afternoon that Israeli authorities allowed lawyers to meet with the detained activists.

“Following persistent demands, Adalah’s lawyers are now meeting with 19 of the detained volunteers at Ashdod Port to provide legal consultation,” the group said. “The remaining two activists, Bob Suberi and Huwaida Arraf, both dual Israeli and US citizens, have been transferred to the police, where an Adalah lawyer is also present to provide legal support.”

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Earlier, the Foreign Ministry said the Navy stopped the Handala to prevent it from entering the coastal waters off the territory of Gaza.

“The vessel is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. All passengers are safe,” it said.

The IDF, in response to an earlier query about the ship, said it was “enforcing the maritime security blockade on the Gaza Strip.”

Just before midnight on Saturday, video livestreamed from the Handala showed Israeli troops boarding the vessel. An online tracker showed the ship in international waters west of Gaza.

The coalition that operates the vessel said the Israeli military “violently intercepted” the ship in international waters about 40 nautical miles from Gaza, cutting the cameras and communication.

“All cargo was non-military, civilian and intended for direct distribution to a population facing deliberate starvation and medical collapse under Israel’s illegal blockade,’’ the Flotilla group said in a statement.

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The Handala‘s crew had said before their capture in a post on X that they would go on a hunger strike if the Israeli army intercepted the boat and detained its passengers.

On board were activists from 10 countries, including two French MPs from the left-wing France Unbowed party — Emma Fourreau and Gabrielle Cathala. There are also European and Arab activists among those detained.

‘Handala’ was illegally boarded by Israel military in international waters, around 40 nautical miles off the coast of Gaza. Before interception the 21 crew made this statement: if attacked they will join the global hunger strike for Gaza. Call your governments now and hold them… pic.twitter.com/QbqUaduXG1 — Freedom Flotilla Coalition (@GazaFFlotilla) July 27, 2025

Also on board were seven US citizens, including a human rights attorney, a Jewish US war veteran and a Jewish-American activist, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani spoke with his Israeli counterpart, Gideon Sa’ar, regarding two Italians on board, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Sa’ar indicated that if they didn’t agree to leave the country immediately, they would be forcibly repatriated over the next three days, the ministry said.

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It was the second ship operated by the coalition that Israel has prevented in recent months from delivering aid to Gaza, where food experts have for months warned of the risk of famine. Activist Greta Thunberg was among 12 activists on board the ship Madleen when it was seized by the military in June. In May, the coalition’s civilian aid ship Conscience sustained a drone attack off Malta that disabled the vessel.

The Handala’s interception comes as Israel faces mounting international criticism over the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza, with concern growing over rising hunger in the territory amid Israeli restrictions on aid.

Past attempts to break the blockade have also failed, most notably the Mavi Marmara incident of 2010, which saw Israeli commandos board a Turkish-led flotilla bound for Gaza. The violence that ensued when those aboard the ship attacked the soldiers resulted in the deaths of 10 activists and left a soldier badly wounded, sparking international condemnation and a severe diplomatic rift between Israel and Turkey.

Israel and Egypt have imposed varying degrees of blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007 in a violent coup. Israel says it is necessary to limit Hamas’s ability to smuggle in arms with which to attack the Jewish state. Critics of the blockade say it amounts to collective punishment of Gaza’s roughly 2 million Palestinians.

Nearly 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the war, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants.

In recent weeks, as the humanitarian situation has deteriorated severely, the ministry says, dozens of people have died of causes related to malnutrition in Gaza, including at least 22 children. That’s up from 10 children who died from such causes during all five previous months of 2025, according to the ministry.

Israeli authorities have maintained that while the humanitarian situation in Gaza is difficult, there is no widespread famine. On Saturday, they announced new airdrops of aid and “humanitarian pauses” in the fighting starting Sunday, aimed at facilitating the safe delivery of goods by the United Nations.

Greta Thunberg dismissed the viral image of her receiving a sandwich from an IDF soldier as a ‘PR stunt’ by Israel as she arrived in France, shooting back at allegations of moral grandstanding after her ‘freedom flotilla’ was intercepted on Monday.

The activist, 22, spoke to reporters about her experience after being detained by Israel along with 11 others. They had attempted to sail from Italy to Gaza to deliver a symbolic amount of aid and raise awareness of the enclave’s humanitarian crisis.

Pressed on how her opponents in Israel had accused the activists of performative theatre, Thunberg dismissed the allegations as ‘ironic coming from them’, considering ‘the PR stunt of them handing out sandwiches or whatever’.

The Israeli foreign ministry has portrayed the voyage as nothing more than a publicity stunt by ‘celebrity activists’, referring to the Madleen as ‘the selfie yacht’. After their vessel was intercepted, she was photographed receiving a turkey sandwich from a soldier.

Thunberg also responded to Donald Trump’s overnight comments branding her an ‘angry young woman’ and suggesting she should ‘go to anger management class’.

Hearing the comments for the first time, she hit back: ‘Well, I think the world needs a lot more young, angry women, to be honest. Especially with everything going on right now.’

Thunberg went on to reiterate her stance that Israel had ‘kidnapped’ the group in international waters and ‘taken them against their will’, after security forces intercepted the Madleen some 100 nautical miles from Gaza.

‘This is yet another intentional violation of rights that is added to the list of countless other violations that Israel is committing,’ Thunberg told reporters on arrival at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris after being deported from Israel.

Thunberg told reporters that Israel had ‘kidnapped’ the group in international waters and ‘taken them against their will’, after security forces intercepted the Madleen

Pressed on how opponents in Israel had accused the activists of performative theatre, Thunberg dismissed the allegations as ‘ironic coming from them’, considering ‘the PR stunt of them handing out sandwiches or whatever’. (pictured June 9)

Greta Thunberg talks to journalists upon her arrival to Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport, as she left Israel on a flight to Sweden via France, after she was detained along with other activists aboard a Gaza-bound aid boat, on June 10, 2025

Israel’s Foreign Ministry shared a photo of the disgruntled 22-year-old sitting on board the plane moments before the flight departed Israel’s Ben Gurion airport

The crew of the Madleen ship, who had planned to sail to Gaza to deliver aid, were scooped up by Israeli Navy boats well before they reached shore early on Monday and towed to the port of Ashdod.

Eight of the 12 activists refused to sign deportation papers and are being detained pending a court hearing. Thunberg and three others signed the documents and are now on a flight out of Israel.

Asked today why she chose to come back, she told reporters: ‘Why would I want to stay in Israeli prison…more than necessary?’

She said she and some others had signed documents saying that they wanted to return ‘as soon as we could’ but did not accept the premise that they had entered the country illegally.

‘We were held in separate places…I haven’t had contact. I wasn’t able to talk or say goodbye [to the other activists].

‘But I do know that were were major issues with people actually getting to talk to lawyers,’ she claimed.

Asked whether she was interrogated, Thunberg stated plainly: ‘Yeah.’

She described a ‘quite chaotic and uncertain’ situation during the detention, while insisting the conditions they faced ‘are absolutely nothing compared to what people are going through in Palestine and especially Gaza right now’.

Reporters at the scene did not ask Thunberg about the footage of Hamas’ October 7 atrocities, which the activists allegedly refused to watch, according to Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz.

A surveillance footage shows crew of the Gaza-bound British-flagged yacht ‘Madleen’, put their hands up as they are intercepted by Israeli boats

Greta Thunberg is pictured at the Israeli port of Ashdod after the Madleen ‘freedom flotilla’ ship was intercepted by Israeli boats yesterday

Asked whether she deemed the mission a success, she said: ‘We were well aware of the risks of going on this mission and … there has been many previous flotilla on similar missions that have been either attacked, intercepted or actually reaching Gaza.

‘We were 12 peaceful volunteers sailing on a civilian ship carrying humanitarian aid on international waters.’

She maintained: ‘We did not break laws. We did nothing wrong.’

Asked about her next steps, she said: ‘As you can see, I’m desperately in need of a shower, sleep, but what is certain is that we will not stop.

‘We are going to continue to try to do everything we can because that is the promise that we have given to the Palestinians that we are going to try every single day in every way that we can, keep trying to demand an end to the atrocities that Israel is doing.’

Asked whether she would personally try to break the siege on Gaza again, she made mention of another march already planned, without committing to another attempt.

‘This is definitely not the end,’ she added. ‘This is going to continue. Of course.’

Speaking today, Thunberg maintained: ‘We did not break laws. We did nothing wrong.’

Greta Thunberg talks to journalists upon her arrival to Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport

Greta will later travel home to Sweden, despite her well documented opposition to air travel.

‘I do more good outside of Israel than if I am forced to stay here for a few weeks,’ she said, according to Moatasem Zedan, a spokesperson for the human rights group Adalah who is providing legal representation to the activists.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry shared a photo of the 22-year-old sitting on board the plane moments before the flight departed Israel’s Ben Gurion airport.

Prior to her deportation, Defence Minister Israel Katz said he had instructed IDF officials to show the activists the full, unedited footage of the October 7 attacks as recorded by Hamas terrorist body cameras.

Katz said it was ‘appropriate’ the crew now see ‘what atrocities [Hamas] committed against women, the elderly and children, and against whom Israel is fighting to defend itself’.

He branded Thunberg ‘anti-Semitic’ in the comments.

The video of Hamas’ attacks reportedly contains 43 minutes of ‘uncensored’ footage of ‘people being massacred and bodies mutilated during the onslaught’, according to the Times of Israel.

Later last night, he told reporters: ‘Greta and her flotilla companions were taken into a room upon their arrival to the screening of the horror film of the October 7 massacre… when they saw what it was about, they refused to continue watching.

‘The anti-Semitic flotilla members are turning a blind eye to the truth and have proven once again that they prefer the murderers to the murdered and continue to ignore the atrocities committed by Hamas against Jewish and Israeli women, adults, and children.’

Katz and other Israeli officials have come under fire for branding Thunberg and her fellow activists ‘anti-Semitic’ for wanting to deliver aid to starving Gazans.

A Hamas gunman is seen storming into an Israeli kibbutz on October 7

An image shared by the Israeli Foreign Ministry of what the ministry said were passengers on the Madleen Gaza-bound aid boat being given sandwiches

But Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said: ‘This wasn’t humanitarian aid. It’s Instagram activism…

‘Who’s really feeding Gaza and who’s really feeding their own ego? Greta was not bringing aid, she was bringing herself.’

Thunberg today said the group had brought as much aid as they could on the Madleen. She said the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which organised the voyage, had a ‘much larger boat’ that was ‘bombed twice’ a month ago.

‘All the evidence strongly points to Israel,’ she alleged. Last month, another ship carrying aid was hit by drones in international waters of Malta. The FFC said they were told they were ‘surveillance drones operated by the Hellenic Coast Guard’ of Greece ‘and/or Frontex’.

‘We made this trip with a smaller boat and a smaller group because that’s all we had,’ Thunberg explained on Tuesday. ‘And because they bombed the last boat.’

‘This is about bringing as much humanitarian aid as we possible could while also sending a message of solidarity and hope,’ she added.

The voyage of the Madleen from the Italian island of Sicily to Gaza was planned by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), an organisation founded shortly after October 7, 2023 to raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The activists had set out to protest Israel’s military campaign in the embattled territory, which it claims amounts to genocide, and Israel’s restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid.

Israel’s military operations and aid blockades have put the territory of around 2 million Palestinians at risk of famine.

The FFC said the activists were ‘kidnapped by Israeli forces’ while trying to deliver desperately needed aid on Monday.

‘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 added the ship was seized in international waters about 200 kilometres (120 miles) from Gaza, and Adalah – a legal rights group representing the activists – asserted that Israel had ‘no legal authority’ to take it over.

The Madleen was said to have been shadowed by speedboats and drones before ‘quadcopters’ surrounded and sprayed the ship with an unidentified ‘white irritant substance’, shortly before the IDF seized it.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry circulated footage of what appeared to be Israeli military personnel handing out sandwiches and water to the activists, who were wearing life vests, after the ship was intercepted adrift in the Mediterranean.

A statement shared on X early this morning read: ‘Some of the ‘Selfie Yacht’ passengers are expected to leave within the next few hours.

‘Those who refuse to sign deportation documents and leave Israel will be brought before a judicial authority, in accordance with Israeli law, to authorize their deportation. Consuls from the passengers’ home countries met them at the airport.’

Other footage released on Instagram by the FFC appeared to show the crew of the Madleen tossing their phones and laptops into the water prior to being boarded.

Thunberg joined 11 activists in sailing to the Gaza Strip with a ‘symbolic’ amount of aid

A general view of the Ashdod Port where the Madleen was towed after being intercepted

An Israeli officer at the Super Nova Festival in Re’im, Israel, after it was attacked by Hamas on October 7, 2023

Activist Greta Thunberg sits aboard the aid ship Madleen in a photo shared on June 2

In the wake of the Madleen’s seizure by Israeli forces, a pre-recorded message of Thunberg was shared on social media by the FFC.

‘If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel,’ she said.

‘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.’

But her request was snubbed by Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard, who said the crew and passengers aboard the Madleen were aware of the risks of their journey.

Stenergard said the ministry’s assessment is that no one was in danger and there was no need for consular support, according to Swedish outlet TT.

‘A great responsibility rests on those who choose to travel contrary to the advice given to a place,’ she said outside the Swedish parliament, as protestors gathered in Stockholm to demand an intervention.

The minister lamented that, as a result of Greta’s plea, the consular hotline had received a high volume of calls that meant Swedes ‘in need’ abroad were being held in long queues for assistance.

‘It is quite dangerous to run a campaign that means that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ consular hotline is called down,’ she said, adding: ‘The consequence is that Swedes in need abroad have to wait in line for far too long.’

Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, was among six French citizens those on board.

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

French President Emmanuel Macron, who has openly opposed Israel’s actions in Gaza, called for consular protection and the repatriation of the French citizens.

‘Most of all, France calls for a ceasefire as quickly as possible and the lifting of the humanitarian blockade. This is a scandal, unacceptable, that is playing out in Gaza. What’s been happening since early March is a disgrace, a disgrace,’ Macron said.

Next week, Macron is set to co-host a conference at the UN on a two-state solution and recently said France should move toward recognising a Palestinian state, drawing outrage from Israeli officials.

US President Donald Trump also weighed in on the issue last night.

When asked about the Freedom Flotilla and Thunberg’s activism at a White House press conference, the President suggested the Swede needs to calm down.

‘I think she has to go to anger management class. That’s my primary recommendation for her.’

Trump described the climate activist as a ‘young, angry person,’ but added, ‘I don’t know if it’s real anger.’

Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (pictured in May) snubbed Thunberg’s plea

The Madleen, which sailed towards Gaza to raise awareness of the crisis in the territory

Protestors hold signs reading ‘Neutrality = complicity’ (C) and Palestinian flags as they attend a demonstration to show their support for activists aboard a boat stopped by Israeli forces en route to deliver aid to Gaza, in Toulouse, south-western France on June 9, 2025

The interception of the Freedom Flotilla by Israeli boats in the early hours of Monday morning triggered widespread protests.

In London, demonstrators gathered outside the FCDO offices in Whitehall to call on the country to protect the crew of the British-flagged ship.

One held a sign that read: ‘Israel attacks UK boat. UK does nothing.’

Images emerged showing the deck of the charity vessel splattered with an unidentified white liquid, and the activists said they were ‘under assault’.

Activist Yasmin Acar, among those on board, said it had been deployed by Israel and was affecting her eyes.

Huwaida Arraf, the co-founder of the International Solidarity Movement, also told Al Jazeera that crew members had said their eyes were burning from the substance.

‘We don’t know what that chemical was. Some people reported that their eyes were burning,’ they said.

Defence Minister Katz insisted no one aboard the ship was harmed and praised the military on its ‘quick and safe takeover’ of the ship.

The crew on board the Madleen sailed towards Gaza in an effort to raise awareness of the deepening humanitarian crisis.

Israel imposed a blockade on supplies – including food and medicine – into the Palestinian enclave on March 2, and limited aid only began to enter again late last month after pressure from allies and warnings of famine.

ActionAid had reported in April that the price of flour in Gaza had soared to $300 a bag after more than 50 days without new aid deliveries.

More than 3,700 children were newly admitted for treatment for acute malnutrition in March alone, it said, an 80 per cent rise on the previous month, per UNOCHA.

Still, most people in Gaza are surviving on just a single meal per day, consisting mostly of pasta, rice or canned food.

Protestors demonstrate in support of the Freedom Flotilla opposite Downing Street on June 9, 2025 in London, England

Police argue with protestors demonstrating in support of the Freedom Flotilla on June 9, 2025 in London, England

A demonstrator holds a placard reading ‘Stop the Genocide’ during a solidarity rally for Gaza and Palestine at the Place de la Republique in Paris, France, 09 June 2025

Protestors demonstrate in support of the Freedom Flotilla opposite Downing Street on June 9, 2025

Humanitarian workers and experts have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive.

Nine tenths of the population have been displaced by 21 months of war, with Israel now pursuing a new major offensive in the strip.

Israel and Egypt have imposed varying degrees of blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007.

Israel says the blockade is needed to prevent Hamas from importing arms, while critics say it amounts to collective punishment of Gaza’s Palestinian population.

But it is facing mounting international pressure to allow more aid into Gaza to alleviate widespread shortages of food and basic supplies.

It recently allowed humanitarian deliveries to resume after barring them for more than two months and began working with the newly formed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a shadowy US-backed organisation.

But humanitarian agencies have criticised the GHF and the United Nations 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.

In May, another Freedom Flotilla ship, the Conscience, was damaged in international waters off Malta as it headed to Gaza, with the activists saying they suspected an Israeli drone attack.

A 2010 Israeli commando raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, which was part of a similar attempt to breach the naval blockade, left 10 civilians dead.