Environmental activist Greta Thunberg is being sent back from Israel following the capture of a vessel she was aboard, which was headed towards Gaza.
Thunberg, along with 11 other activists, had set sail on the Madleen, a ship delivering aid to Gaza’s residents. The Israeli navy intercepted the vessel early Monday, approximately 125 miles from Gaza’s shoreline, as reported by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), the organization behind this mission.
In a video posted on Twitter on Sunday, June 8, Thunberg asserted that she and her companions were ‘kidnapped in international waters’ by the Israeli military. However, Israel’s Foreign Ministry responded by calling their journey ‘a media provocation whose sole purpose was to gain publicity’.
The ship, under the escort of the Israeli navy, reached the Israeli port of Ashdod on Monday night.
On Twitter, Israel’s Foreign Ministry published a photo of Thunberg aboard an aircraft, indicating she was traveling to France before proceeding to Sweden.
Adalah, a legal advocacy organization in Israel advocating for the 22-year-old and other activists, confirmed that Thunberg, alongside two other campaigners and a journalist, agreed to deportation.
Some activists resisted deportation and remain in detention, awaiting a hearing with Israeli authorities, according to Sky News.
Sabine Haddad, spokesperson for Israel’s Interior Ministry, mentioned that the activists departing on Tuesday had renounced their right to appear before a judge. Those choosing not to will face a judge within 96 hours and will be detained until deportation, as reported by The Washington Post.
Among the volunteers on board was Rima Hassan, a French European Parliament member of Palestinian heritage.
Previously prevented from entering Israel due to her stance against Israeli policies towards Palestinians, it remains uncertain whether she will be deported or detained, the outlet further reports.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot stated on Tuesday, June 10, that one of the detained French activists signed an expulsion order and would return to France, though he did not specify which individual signed the order.
Meanwhile, the remaining five refused and all activists had consular visits, he noted.
According to FFC, the group was ‘expected to be moved to the Ramleh detention facility unless they agree to leave immediately’ around 1am.
They asserted: “We continue to demand the immediate release of all volunteers and the return of the stolen aid. Their detention is unlawful and a violation of international law.”
Adalah further claimed that Israel lacked the ‘legal authority’ to seize the ship as the group maintained it was in international waters and intended to reach the ‘territorial waters of the state of Palestine’, not Israel.