US senator posts ominous message to Greta Thunberg
Joining the flotilla that aims to break Israel's naval blockade of the Gaza Strip may end badly for Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, US Senator Lindsey Graham has warned in a post on X.
On Sunday, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FCC) announced that one of its yachts, crewed by 12 people, including Thunberg, had left Sicily for Gaza with a 'symbolic' cargo of humanitarian aid.
"Hope Greta and her friends can swim!' wrote Graham, a staunch supporter of Israel and an ally of US President Donald Trump, apparently implying that Thunberg's boat, the Madleen, could be sunk.
The previous Freedom Flotilla mission was aborted in early May after one of the boats, named Conscience, was hit by two drones in international waters near Malta. The FCC blamed Israel for the attack. Israel did not comment.
Thunberg said before her departure that 'no matter how dangerous this mission is, it is nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the lives being genocized [sic],' in the Gaza Strip.
Hope Greta and her friends can swim!https://t.co/Noab4QyJtV
Israel has denied accusations of perpetrating genocide, and has blamed the brutal suffering of the Palestinian population on the unwillingness of Hamas to lay down arms. West Jerusalem has justified the naval blockade of Gaza, in place since 2007, by the need to prevent arms deliveries to the Palestinian fighters.
According to the UN, one in five people in the Gaza Strip is now facing starvation, following a renewed Israeli offensive that began in March.
Israel began its military operation in the enclave in response to a cross-border raid by Hamas on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,200 people died and 250 others were taken prisoner. Israel's 18-month military response has killed more than 54,400 Palestinians, almost half of whom are women and children, and wounded over 124,000, according to the latest data from the enclave's Health Ministry.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
15 hours ago
- Russia Today
UK threatens to sue Russian tycoon over money for Ukraine
The British government has warned it could sue Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich if he fails to approve the transfer of £2.5 billion ($3.4 billion) to Ukraine from the sale of Chelsea football club. The threat came from Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves and Foreign Secretary David Lammy in a joint statement on Monday. Abramovich sold Chelsea to a consortium of American investors in May 2022, shortly after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict and after being sanctioned by London over alleged Kremlin ties. The tycoon, who denied the accusations and has acted as a mediator between Moscow and Kiev on several occasions, intended the proceeds to be used to help victims of the Ukraine conflict on both sides. London, however, has been pushing for the money to go solely to Ukraine, ignoring the businessman's wishes. 'The government is determined to see the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club reach humanitarian causes in Ukraine,' the statement from Reeves and Lammy read. They added that the UK is 'deeply frustrated' that it has been unable to reach an agreement with Abramovich more than three years after the sale. 'While the door for negotiations will remain open, we are fully prepared to pursue this through the courts if required, to ensure people suffering in Ukraine can benefit from these proceeds as soon as possible,' they stated. The money remains frozen in a UK bank account, pending Foreign Office license for its release abroad. Due to sanctions, Abramovich cannot access the funds but remains their legal owner and must approve any distribution. UK government sources told The Guardian in March that a 'fundamental disagreement' exists between London and Abramovich over the allocation of the funds. They said officials had held multiple discussions with the businessman's representatives, legal advisers, and international partners, and are determined to resolve the issue, including through legal action. Abramovich's representatives did not respond to media requests for comment. Western nations imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia after the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022, freezing over $300 billion of its international reserves and seizing assets from individuals accused of profiting from the conflict. Western officials have repeatedly suggested using the frozen assets to fund Ukraine's reconstruction. Moscow has condemned the freezing of its assets, denouncing the asset seizure proposals as 'outright theft' and warning of reciprocal action against Western holdings in Russia. A number of countries, including in the West, have also warned that confiscating frozen Russian funds would violate international law, set a dangerous precedent, and damage the credibility of Western financial institutions.
Russia Today
15 hours ago
- Russia Today
Israel losing most steadfast EU supporter
Germany is rethinking its military and trade ties with Israel, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. The 'surprising' pivot from one of the Jewish state's staunchest supporters comes amid a worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and growing frustration in Berlin over Israel's actions. 'German anger' rose in mid-May as Israel intensified its campaign against Hamas while continuing to block humanitarian aid, according to information obtained by Bloomberg. Germany has adhered to a long-standing policy that protecting Israel is a post-Holocaust obligation. It has also been Israel's largest European arms supplier and one of its top trade partners. In Germany's first such public comments since the war began 20 months ago, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said last week that the humanitarian situation could 'no longer be justified by a fight against Hamas terrorism.' During a phone call with Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, Merz urged the Israeli prime minister to allow 'sufficient humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip immediately.' 'This is a real marker of how things have moved,' Julien Barnes-Dacey of the European Council on Foreign Relations told Bloomberg. 'It's simply become impossible for most European governments to continue supporting Israel's war despite strong ongoing commitments to Israel's security.' Israel has long faced accusations of war crimes for obstructing humanitarian aid to Gaza, including a total blockade imposed after October 7, 2023, and repeated restrictions on food, fuel, and medicine entering the besieged enclave. While the Israeli government argues such measures are necessary to prevent supplies from reaching Hamas, critics say the impact on civilians is catastrophic. Berlin's shift mirrors wider discontent across Europe. The UK, France, and the Netherlands are also weighing trade and arms restrictions on Israel. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in May there is 'a strong majority' in favor of reviewing the EU-Israel trade agreement. The EU is Israel's largest trading partner, with $47 billion in goods exchanged last year, according to IMF data. Last week, Israel launched a new aid distribution system through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US- and Israeli-backed initiative. However, the effort has already drawn criticism, as multiple incidents have occurred where Palestinians seeking aid were killed. On Tuesday, at least 27 people died near a distribution site in Rafah, according to Palestinian health officials and witnesses. The Israeli military said troops fired on individuals who had strayed from designated routes and posed a potential threat. Israel maintains that its military strategy is necessary to defeat Hamas and secure the release of the remaining hostages who had been taken during the October 7 attack, which killed 1,200 people. The Hamas-run health ministry reports over 54,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began.
Russia Today
20 hours ago
- Russia Today
EU unlikely to meet demand from US senators on Russia sanctions
The EU is unlikely to finalize its next round of Russia sanctions before the G7 summit in Canada later this month, despite calls from US lawmakers for coordinated action, the EUobserver media outlet reported on Tuesday. US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has said he aims to push new sanctions through by mid-June. In a joint statement with Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, the two urged the EU and US to curb China and India's purchases of discounted Russian oil. Graham and Blumenthal visited Kiev together on Friday. Four EU diplomats earlier told EUobserver that the call to have 'sanctions put in place – in coordination with Europe' by the G7 summit in Alberta on June 15-17 is unlikely to be met. Both senators visited France over the weekend to urge their EU allies to take stronger action. Graham also met EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who said the bloc is preparing its 18th package of 'hard-biting sanctions' against Moscow. Western countries have imposed widespread sanctions on Russia since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022 in a bid to isolate the country. The restrictions include a ban on Russia's seaborne oil shipments, cutting the country off from the Western financial system, and freezing around $300 billion in foreign reserves. The bloc introduced its 17th round of sanctions in May. Graham, a longtime Russia hawk and ally of US President Donald Trump, is backing legislation that would impose a 500% tariff on countries that buy Russian energy, uranium, and other raw materials – measures aimed chiefly at India and China. He said the move has support from 82 of the 100 US senators. Trump has said the EU push for restrictions could make the chances of settling the Ukraine conflict 'much worse,' but noted that 'there could be a time where that's going to happen.' He has also criticized Russia for recent strikes on Ukraine. Moscow has stressed that it is carrying out strikes on Ukrainian military-linked installations in response to Kiev's increased drone attacks on Russian civilian facilities. Moscow has also said Trump is being misled about the Ukraine conflict by those pushing Washington toward supporting Kiev and taking a more aggressive stance on Russia.
