Greta Thunberg among Gaza-bound activists facing deportation after yacht intercepted in Israel

Twelve activists, including Greta Thunberg, aboard a yacht which was on its way to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, arrived at an airport for deportation on Tuesday, after the boat was seized in the Israeli port of Ashdod.

“The passengers of the ‘Selfie Yacht’ arrived at Ben Gurion Airport to depart from Israel and return to their home countries,” the Israeli foreign ministry said on social media.

“Those who refuse to sign deportation documents and leave Israel will be brought before a judicial authority,” it added.

Thunberg and other prominent activists were taken for medical examinations on Monday evening and were also shown a “horror film documenting the October 7 massacre” carried out by Hamas, Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz said.

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“When they saw what it was about, they refused to continue watching,” Katz claimed, adding that Thunberg and the other activists are ignoring Hamas’s atrocities by “closing their eyes to the truth.”

Video released earlier by the group showed the activists with their hands up as Israeli forces boarded the vessel, with one of them saying nobody was injured.

Who are the crew and what is the boat carrying?

The aid ship has been organised by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which accused the Israeli military of “attacking”  and “unlawfully boarding” the Madleen.

The Madleen was intercepted about 185 kilometres (115 miles) west of the coast of Gaza, according to coordinates from the coalition.

It was carrying rice and baby formula to Gaza, which has been deprived of aid by Israel.

The vessel carries citizens from Brazil, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey, including Rima Hassan, a French Member of the European Parliament, and Omar Faiad, a French journalist with Al Jazeera.

Israel condemned for intercepting Madleen

The seizing of the activist boat carrying aid for Gaza has been condemned by leaders across the world, including Hamas, which demanded the immediate release of the crew and called the interception “a flagrant violation of international law, and an attack on civilian volunteers acting out of humanitarian motives.”

French President Emmanuel Macron called on Israel to quickly free activists. Macron had “requested that the six French nationals be allowed to return to France as soon as possible,” his office said.

France was “vigilant” and “stands by all its nationals when they are in danger,” he added. The French government had also called on Israel to ensure the “protection” of the activists. Macron also called the humanitarian blockade of Gaza “a scandal” and a “disgrace”.

Turkey also joined other countries in slamming Israel, saying, “The intervention by Israeli forces on the ‘Madleen’ ship.. while sailing in international waters is a clear violation of international law.”

With inputs from agencies