Israeli naval forces have detained Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg after boarding vessels in the Global Sumud Flotilla that were attempting to deliver aid to Gaza, with officials saying the passengers would be taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod and deported. A video released by Israel’s foreign ministry showed a uniformed serviceman handing Thunberg her belongings; the ministry wrote that “Greta and her friends are safe and healthy.” The interception took place on October 1–2 as dozens of civilian boats drew near waters off the Gaza Strip amid stepped-up Israeli military operations and continuing international pressure over the enclave’s humanitarian crisis.
Organisers said at least 14 to 20 vessels were halted around 70 nautical miles from Gaza, while other boats continued sailing in loose formation toward the territory. Israeli authorities described the area as an active combat zone and reiterated that any aid could be transferred through established channels rather than via a flotilla that officials argued was designed to provoke confrontation. The foreign ministry, which has referred to the convoy as the “Hamas-Sumud flotilla,” said passengers were being taken to port “safely,” a formulation reflecting an undertaking conveyed to Italy’s foreign minister that force would not be used in the operation.
The flotilla, comprising more than 40 small craft carrying roughly 500 participants — including parliamentarians, lawyers, medical workers and high-profile campaigners — set off in stages from European ports in late summer to test Israel’s naval blockade, in place since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007. Its progress across the Mediterranean drew sustained attention from foreign governments, with several capitals dispatching surveillance assets and consular teams to monitor their nationals. Video streamed from the boats showed passengers sitting in circles on deck and communicating with shore teams until connections degraded as Israeli vessels closed in; organisers accused Israel of jamming communications as interdictions began.
Thunberg, 22, had boarded one of the ships as part of a renewed maritime push after smaller convoys were stopped earlier in the year. She was among a dozen people detained in June when Israeli forces seized the Madleen near Gaza and towed it to Israel, where crew members were processed and deported. Since beginning school strikes at 15 and helping catalyse the Fridays for Future youth movement, she has aligned her advocacy in recent years with calls for a ceasefire and civilian protection in Gaza, joining street protests and, more recently, maritime missions. The flotilla’s organisers framed her presence as part of a broader effort to keep public attention on Gaza’s shortages of food, medicine and fuel.