Israeli defence minister Israel Katz has told the Israeli military to stop a charity boat carrying activists including Sweden’s Greta Thunberg who are planning to defy an Israeli blockade and reach Gaza.
Operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), the British-flagged Madleen yacht set sail from Sicily on June 6th and on Sunday evening was off the Egyptian coast, heading slowly towards the Gaza Strip, which is besieged by Israel.
“I instructed the IDF to act so that the Madleen ... does not reach Gaza,” Mr Katz said in a statement.
“To the anti-Semitic Greta and her Hamas-propaganda-spouting friends, I say clearly: You’d better turn back, because you will not reach Gaza.”
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Climate activist Ms Thunberg said she joined the Madleen crew to “challenge Israel’s illegal siege and escalating war crimes” in Gaza and highlight the urgent need for humanitarian aid. She has rejected previous Israeli accusations of anti-Semitism.
Israel went to war with Hamas in October 2023 after the Islamist militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel, killing more 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to the enclave, according to Israeli tallies.
More than 54,000 Palestinians have died during the ongoing Israeli assault, according to Gaza health authorities, with much of the Palestinian territory reduced to rubble. The United Nations has warned that most of Gaza’s 2.3 million population is at risk of famine.
Mr Katz said the blockade was essential to Israel’s national security as it seeks to eliminate Hamas.
“The State of Israel will not allow anyone to break the naval blockade on Gaza, whose primary purpose is to prevent the transfer of weapons to Hamas,” he said.
The Madleen is carrying a symbolic quantity of aid, including rice and baby formula, the FFC has said.
[ International aid ship en route to Gaza will be stopped, warns Israeli militaryOpens in new window ]
FFC press officer Hay Sha Wiya said on Sunday afternoon that the boat was 160 nautical miles (296km) from Gaza. “We are preparing for the possibility of interception,” she said.
Besides Ms Thunberg, there are 11 other crew members aboard, including Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament.
Israeli media have reported that the military plans to intercept the yacht before it reaches Gaza and escort it to the Israeli port of Ashdod. The crew would then be deported.
In 2010, Israeli commandos killed 10 people when they boarded a Turkish ship, the Mavi Marmara, that was leading a small flotilla towards Gaza.
The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Harris said on X on Sunday that any use of force against the boat would “constitute a breach of international law.” He added: “The international community must be clear on this.”
He said it was “an unarmed, civilian effort to do good in the midst of devastation and catastrophic humanitarian conditions.”
– Reuters
