The Israeli government has pledged to stop a boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists from reaching the Gaza Strip.
Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, stated that Israel will not permit anyone to violate its naval blockade, which is intended to prevent Hamas from bringing in weapons.
He made it clear, saying, “To the anti-Semitic Greta and her fellow Hamas supporters: you should turn back, because you won’t reach Gaza.”
Thunberg, a prominent climate activist, is one of 12 individuals on board the Madleen, a vessel operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition.
The ship set sail from Sicily last Sunday, aiming to breach the sea blockade of Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid and raise awareness of the worsening humanitarian crisis during the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, which has lasted 20 months.
The activists are hopeful to reach Gaza’s territorial waters as early as Sunday.
Thiago Ávila, a Brazilian activist on board, shared a video on social media claiming that their tracking and communication devices were being jammed while they were approximately 160 nautical miles from the strip.
Another passenger is Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament of Palestinian descent, who has been prohibited from entering Israel due to her stance against Israeli policies concerning Palestinians.
After a two-and-a-half-month complete blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel eased restrictions slightly last month to allow some basic aid into Gaza. However, humanitarian organization representatives have warned of potential famine unless the blockade is lifted and military actions cease.
A previous attempt by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed last month when one of its vessels was struck by two drones while in international waters near Malta.
The group attributed the attack to Israel, which caused damage to the front of the ship.
Since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007, Israel and Egypt have implemented varying levels of blockade on the territory.
Critics argue that the blockade represents collective punishment for the approximately two million Palestinians living there.
Israel initially cut off aid to Gaza following the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, but later eased the restrictions under pressure from the United States.
In early March, just before ending a ceasefire with Hamas, Israel again halted all imports, including food, fuel, and medicine.
The Hamas-led attack on October 7 resulted in around 1,200 deaths, mostly civilians, and the abduction of 251 hostages, with more than half released in ceasefire deals.
Currently, Hamas is still holding 55 hostages, many of whom are believed to be deceased.
Israeli military actions have reportedly caused over 54,000 Palestinian deaths, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which indicates that a significant proportion of the casualties are women and children.
The reports do not specify whether those killed are civilians or combatants.
