Greta Thunberg deported from Israel, eight activists refuse

Swedish activist Greta Thunberg was deported from Israel on Tuesday morning after she and 11 other activists were stopped at sea by Israeli forces on Monday while attempting to break the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip, according to Hebrew media.

Four of the activists signed deportation orders while eight refused, including French Member of the European Parliament Rima Hassan, Ynet reported.

The twelve had attempted to sail to Gaza aboard the U.K.-flagged yacht Madleen, operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC).

“The passengers of the ‘Selfie Yacht’ arrived at Ben Gurion Airport to depart from Israel and return to their home countries,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry posted to X around 3:00 a.m. on Tuesday, a few hours after the yacht was intercepted by Israeli forces.

“Some of the ‘Selfie Yacht’ passengers are expected to leave within the next few hours,” the ministry said.

Those who refused to sign their deportation orders will be detained for 96 hours at the Givon detention center, which handles illegal migrants, after which they can be deported without consent, Ynet reported.

“Those who refuse to sign deportation documents and leave Israel will be brought before a judicial authority, in accordance with Israeli law, to authorize their deportation. Consuls from the passengers’ home countries met them at the airport,” according to the Foreign Ministry.

President Donald Trump was asked about Thunberg by a reporter on Monday.

“I think Israel has enough problems without kidnapping Greta Thunberg,” Trump said.

Thunberg had posted a pre-recorded message to social media saying she had been kidnapped by Israeli forces.

“She’s a strange person. She’s an angry person. I don’t know if it’s real anger, it’s hard to believe, actually. But I saw what happened,” Trump said of Thunberg. “She’s certainly different. I think she has to go to an anger management class. That’s my primary recommendation for her,” he added.

The Madleen had been carrying less than a single truck’s worth of humanitarian aid, according to Israel’s Foreign Ministry.

“While Greta and others attempted to stage a media provocation whose sole purpose was to gain publicity—and which included less than a single truckload of aid—more than 1,200 aid trucks have entered Gaza from Israel within the past two weeks. In addition, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has distributed close to 11 million meals directly to civilians in Gaza,” the ministry said.

In an earlier post, the ministry emphasized that Israel’s blockade of Gaza was legal under international law, and that the Gaza maritime zone is an active conflict area, which Hamas terrorists have previously exploited for attacks, including the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre.

“Unauthorized attempts to breach the blockade are dangerous, unlawful, and undermine ongoing humanitarian efforts. We call on all actors to act responsibly and to channel humanitarian aid through legitimate, coordinated mechanisms, not through provocation,” the ministry stated.

© JNS