Greta Thunberg’s aid flotilla was intercepted by Israeli military and its crew detained as it made its final approach to Gaza, Israeli officials have confirmed.
Three vessels in the Global Sumud Flotilla were cut off by a naval blockade around 70 nautical miles, or 130km, from the besieged strip at around 8:30pm Gaza time on Wednesday evening, according to activists on board.
It said Israeli forces boarded and detained passengers on the Alma, Surius, and Adara boats, which were carrying Ms Thunberg alongside other prominent members of the flotilla’s steering committee.
The group accused Israel of using “water cannons” and “active aggression” on the vessels Florida, Yulara, and Meteque among others
“Prior to illegally boarding the ships, it appears as though the Israeli naval vessels intentionally damaged ship communications, in an attempt to block distress signals and stop the livestream of their illegal boat boarding,” it wrote in a statement. “In addition to the boats confirmed to be intercepted, livestream coverage and communication has been lost with multiple other boats.”
The group later confirmed all passengers were unharmed, but condemned what it called “illegal attacks on unarmed humanitarian ships”, labelling the actions as a “war crime”.
Israel’s foreign ministry later posted a video of Ms Thunberg on X as it said the activists were “safe” and would be transferred to an Israeli port.
“Already several vessels of the Hamas-Sumud flotilla have been safely stopped and their passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port,” it wrote. “Greta and her friends are safe and healthy.”
The Independent has approached the IDF for comment.
Protests were held across the world as demonstrators condemned Israel’s decision to block the aid mission into Gaza. Demonstrations were held in London, Naples, Rome, Istanbul, Barcelona, and Buenos Aires, as hundreds took to the streets in support of the flotilla.
It comes after activists said the flotilla was “aggressively circled” by an Israeli warship as they approached Gaza on Tuesday. Lisi Proenca, on board Sirius, told a press conference on Wednesday that she was on nightwatch when “really fast” boats came towards them.
“It didn’t hit our boat, but it came really close, and then they were circling,” she said, adding that their communications appeared to have been jammed.
The boats moved away after some 15 minutes, she said.
Thiago Avila, on board Alma, said in a press conference on Wednesday morning that the incident had “elements of a cyberattack … against our boats”.
There was no structural damage and nobody was wounded, he said.
The flotilla is on the final stretch of its aid mission to Gaza, carrying around 500 activists including civilians from more than 40 countries. The group have said they are a “peaceful humanitarian mission” with the aim of delivering food and supplies to people in Gaza.
On Tuesday, the flotilla entered the “high-risk zone” as it neared the Gaza coast. A special task force was reportedly been set up ahead of the approach, a joint effort between the IDF, Shin Bet, police and the Foreign Ministry.
The Global Sumud Flotilla’s journey comes after Ms Thunberg was previously detained and later deported from Israel after her Gaza aid boat was intercepted in the Mediterranean in June.
Organisers said they experienced “psychological operations” designed to “intimidate” them, including explosions, unidentified drones and communications jamming throughout their month-long voyage. They said on Tuesday 23 September that several vessels had been targeted by Israeli drones in international waters off Crete.
“Our boats were repeatedly attacked by military drones,” Maria Elena Delia, the GSF’s Italian spokesperson, said at the time. “They struck us with unknown but irritating substances, with sound bombs, and even with drones that deliberately damaged the masts of several vessels.”
No casualties were reported among more than 500 people on board the vessels.
Italian defence minister Guido Crosetto denounced the attack and said he had redirected an Italian navy ship in the area to offer support.
The GSF also said that the flotilla was attacked in Tunisian waters on 9 September.
They posted footage appearing to show one vessel being hit by an object outside the port of Sidi Bou Said.
Tunisian authorities said that a drone was involved and said an initial inspection indicated the explosion came from inside the boat.
The GSF then shared footage appearing to show a second vessel being hit later in the night. They said the boat “sustained fire damage on its top deck”.
No injuries were reported.
The vessels left Barcelona on 1 September with a flotilla of some 40 vessels.
