Greta Thunberg has reacted to claims Freedom Flotilla activists have shown support for Hamas (Image: Getty)
Greta Thunberg has said she wasn’t aware some of the people on board an aid ship bound for Gaza had shown support for Hamas and Hezbollah in the past. The vessel was seized at sea by Israeli authorities, and the climate activist was deported from Israel on Tuesday (June 10).
Asked whether she knew about the views of some of those involved in the Freedom Flotilla voyage, Ms Thunberg told reporters in Sweden last night: “I haven’t heard about it or what this person has said.” Challenged by reporters to explain why she hadn’t considered the issue before the Gaza trip, she said: “Should I ask exactly everyone what exactly they have said about everything? It would take some time.”
READ MORE UK to sanction Israeli ministers over ‘monstrous’ Gaza comments
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Zaher Birawi reportedly helped to organise the aid mission. Labour MP Christian Wakefield, who defected from the Tories to Labour in 2022, has used parliamentary privilege to accuse Mr Birawi of being one of four alleged “Hamas operatives”.
Hamas was proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the UK. This means it is a criminal offence to belong to, encourage, or support the group or wear clothing that could be viewed as showing support for the group.
An activist who travelled with Ms Thunberg on the Madleen aid boat, Thiago Ávila, reportedly attended the funeral of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
The Brazilian national wrote on social media that he felt “inspired” by the chief of the Lebanese group, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in September last year.
Mr Birawi and Mr Ávila have been approached for comment. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition has been approached via the International Committee for Breaking the Siege of Gaza.
Of the 12 activists on board the Madleen, four, including Ms Thunberg, agreed to be deported from Israel.
The rights group, which legally represents some of them, said in a statement that all of the activists have been banned from Israel for 100 years.
Ms Thunberg was welcomed to Sweden by dozens of supporters, waving Palestinian flags and shouting “Free Palestine”.
Asked in Stockholm if she was afraid when Israeli security forces boarded the Madleen, Ms Thunberg said: “What I’m afraid of is that people are silent during an ongoing genocide.’
“What I feel most is concern for the continued violations of international law and war crimes that Israel is guilty of.”
Speaking upon arrival in Paris en route to Sweden, Ms Thunberg called for the release of her fellow activists. She described a “quite chaotic and uncertain” situation during the detention.
She said: “We were well aware of the risks of this mission. The aim was to get to Gaza and to be able to distribute the aid.”
Ms Thunberg urged supporters to ask their governments to demand not only humanitarian aid be let into Gaza, an end to the occupation and to the “systemic oppression and violence that Palestinians are facing on an everyday basis”.
She said recognising Palestine is “the very minimum” governments can do to help.
Israel viewed the ship as a publicity stunt, dubbing it the “selfie yacht” with a “meager” amount of aid amounting to less than a lorry-load.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition has said Israel’s actions in international waters were a violation of international law. Tel Aviv rejects that charge, saying such ships intend to breach what it argues is a lawful naval blockade of Gaza.
Sabine Haddad, a spokeswoman for Israel’s Interior Ministry, said the activists deported on Tuesday had waived their right to appear before a judge.
Greta Thunberg was welcomed to Sweden amid cries of ‘Free Palestine’ (Image: Getty)
She said the others have a hearing with a judge and will be held for 96 hours before being deported.
Sergio Toribio, a Spanish activist who was on the Madleen, criticised Israel’s actions after he arrived in Barcelona. He told reporters: “It is unforgivable. It is a violation of our rights. It is a pirate attack in international waters.”
During the 20-month-long war in Gaza, Israel has restricted and sometimes blocked all aid into the territory.
Experts say that policy has pushed Gaza towards famine. Israel asserts Hamas siphons off the aid to bolster its rule.
Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 7 attack which ignited the war and took 251 hostages. Most have been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Hamas still holds 55 hostages. More than half of them are believed to be dead.
Israel’s military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants but has said women and children make up most of the dead.