A ship carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists was trying to breach Israel’s naval blockade in order to deliver relief to Gaza when Israel intercepted it on Monday.
Following its boarding by Israeli soldiers, the British-flagged yacht Madleen was “safely making its way to the shores of Israel,” according to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
The ministry stated in a post on X that “the passengers are expected to return to their home countries.”
Earlier this month, the ship, carrying a symbolic supply of humanitarian aid, set sail from Sicily to Gaza, where Israel’s 11-week aid blockade has increased concerns about famine.
Climate activist Thunberg said the mission was vital in the face of global silence on what she called a “live-streamed genocide.”
Israel had vowed to stop the vessel, which was also carrying Thiago Ávila, a Brazilian activist and politician; Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament; and Baptiste André, a French doctor who was traveling with the group to assist passengers injured in potential confrontations with Israeli forces.
Hamas condemned the vessel’s interception, saying in a statement, “Gaza is not alone, but rather enjoys the support of the free people of the world.”
Madleen’s attempt to provide aid via the naval route came as the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been tasked with aid distribution as part of a controversial U.S.- and Israel-backed plan, announced Sunday the opening of three distribution centers in Gaza on Monday.
The Madleen’s crew reported signal jamming on Sunday and warned of a possible interception. The Israeli navy approached the boat on Monday and urged it to change course.
In a statement, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said he had instructed the military to “screen the October 7 massacre video to the flotilla passengers upon their arrival at Ashdod Port.”
Katz accused the activists of supporting Hamas and vowed to stop them by “any means necessary” on Sunday as the vessel sailed north of the Egyptian coastal city of Rosetta, roughly 160 nautical miles from Gaza.
Israel, which rejects allegations of genocide, began allowing basic aid into Gaza in mid-May following an international outcry over its three-month total blockade on the entry of food, medicine and other vital supplies that U.N.-backed food experts said had left the enclave’s population of 2 million people at “critical risk of famine.”
Gaza has been under an Israeli naval blockade since 2007, when it was taken over by Hamas.
The Israel-Hamas war began with the militant group’s terrorist attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, in which more than 1,200 people were killed, according to an Israeli tally.
