The Madleen vessel carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists en route to Gaza to provide humanitarian goods was intercepted by the Israeli military on Sunday, authorities said.
Israel's Foreign Ministry's latest updates on the aid boat said the yacht was "safely making its way to the shores of Israel," and its occupants were "expected to return to their home countries."
Posting on Telegram, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) organisation announced "connection has been lost" on the Madleen and later uploaded a photo of people sitting with their hands up in life jackets.
Shortly after, the Israeli Foreign Ministry released a video on X showing its navy giving orders to the Gaza-bound aid ship to divert and posted another footage that showed passengers of what it called the "Selfie Yacht" safe and unharmed.
Prior to the intercept, alarms went off on the boat en route to Gaza in a bid to deliver humanitarian aid, according to the activists.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition stated that the situation caused panic, leading many of them to take cover and put on life jackets in preparation for an intervention.
On Sunday, Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Israel wouldn’t allow anyone to break its naval blockade of the Palestinian territory, which he said was aimed at preventing Hamas from importing arms.
“To the antisemitic Greta and her fellow Hamas propagandists — I will say this clearly: You should turn back, because you will not make it to Gaza,” he said in a statement.
Climate activist Thunberg is one of 12 activists on board the Madleen.
The boat left Sicily last Sunday, stating its mission was to provide humanitarian goods and lift the naval blockade of Gaza while bringing attention to the escalating humanitarian situation two months into the Israel-Hamas war.
In May, the Freedom Flotilla's attempt to reach Gaza by sea failed when two drones struck one of the group's ships as it was cruising in international waters off Malta.
The said attack damaged the frontal part of the vessel, which the group blamed on Israel, a claim that Israel strongly refuted.
