A Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists has been diverted to Israel
JERUSALEM: A Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists has been diverted to Israel, the Foreign Ministry said.
In a post on X, it said the boat 'is safely making its way to the shores of Israel.' The passengers 'are expected to return to their home countries,' it added, without providing further details.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which had organized the voyage to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and protest Israel's blockade of the territory, said the activists had been 'kidnapped by Israeli forces."
Thunberg, a climate campaigner, was among 12 activists aboard the Madleen, which set sail from Sicily a week ago.
Israel had vowed to enforce its longstanding naval blockade of the territory, which it says is needed to prevent Hamas from importing arms.
Aid group says Israeli forces boarded Gaza-bound boat
The organisers of a Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists said Israeli forces intercepted the vessel on Monday, after Israel vowed to prevent it from reaching the Palestinian territory.
The Madleen aimed to deliver aid and challenge Israel's naval blockade of Gaza, which has been in place since before the Israel-Hamas war.
"Connection has been lost on the 'Madleen'. Israeli army have boarded the vessel," the Freedom Flotilla Coalition posted on Telegram, adding that the passengers had been "kidnapped" by Israeli forces.
AFP lost contact with the activists on board.
Mahmud Abu-Odeh, a Germany-based press officer with the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, told AFP that "the activists seemed to be arrested".
Israel had vowed to prevent the ship from reaching Gaza.
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Navy had directed the boat to change course as it approached "a restricted area". About an hour later, it said the boat was being towed to Israeli shores.
"The passengers are expected to return to their home countries," the ministry wrote on social media.
"The tiny amount of aid that was on the yacht and not consumed by the 'celebrities' will be transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels," the ministry added.
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