Israel deports Greta Thunberg after Gaza aid boat intercepted

Jerusalem: Israel deported activist Greta Thunberg on Tuesday, the country’s Foreign Ministry said, a day after the Gaza-bound ship she was on was seized by the Israeli military.

Thunberg left on a flight to France and was then headed to her home country of Sweden, the Foreign Ministry said in a post on X. It posted a photo of Thunberg, a climate activist who shuns air travel, seated on a plane.

Speaking upon arrival at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, Thunberg called for the release of the other activists who were detained aboard the Freedom Flotilla. She described a “quite chaotic and uncertain” situation during the detention.

She said the conditions they faced “are absolutely nothing compared to what people are going through in Palestine and especially Gaza right now”.

“We were well aware of the risks of this mission,” Thunberg added. “The aim was to get to Gaza and to be able to distribute the aid.” She said the activists would continue trying to get aid to Gaza. Thunberg was one of 12 passengers on the Madleen, a ship carrying aid to Gaza that was meant to protest Israel’s ongoing war there and shed light on the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territory, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the group behind the journey.

Israeli naval forces seized the boat without incident early Monday about 200 kilometres off of Gaza’s coast, according to the coalition, which along with rights groups, said Israel’s actions were a violation of international law.

Israel rejects that charge because it says such ships intend to breach what it argues is a lawful naval blockade of Gaza. The boat, accompanied by Israel’s navy, arrived in the Israeli port of Ashdod Monday evening, according to the Foreign Ministry.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition said three activists, including Thunberg, had been deported along with a journalist. It said it had encouraged some of the group to do this so they could speak freely about their experiences.

Eight other passengers refused deportation and were being held in detention before their case is to be heard by Israeli authorities. Adalah, a legal rights group in Israel representing the activists, said the eight were expected to be brought before a court later Tuesday.

“Their detention is unlawful, politically motivated and a direct violation of international law,” the coalition said in a statement. It called for the remaining passengers to be released without deportation and said their lawyers would demand that they be allowed to complete their journey to Gaza.

Sabine Haddad, a spokeswoman for Israel’s Interior Ministry, said the activists who were being deported Tuesday had waived their right to appear before a judge. Those who did not will face one and will be held for 96 hours before being deported,

she said.