Israel to block arrival of activist ship carrying Thunberg in Gaza

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has ordered the military not to allow a sailing ship carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists to enter the Gaza Strip.

"Israel will not allow anyone to break the naval blockade of the Gaza Strip," Katz said in a statement on X.

He said he had ordered the armed forces to prevent the arrival of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition's ship Madleen.

Addressing Thunberg and the 11 other activists on board, Katz said: "You should turn back because you will not reach Gaza."

The defence minister described the ship's crew as "left-wing extremist activists." He emphasized that the naval blockade of Gaza was introduced in 2007 after the Palestinian Islamist Hamas came to power, and aims to prevent weapons from being delivered to the militant group.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition says it wants to bring relief supplies including baby food and medical supplies to the desperate people in the devastated Gaza Strip, and has repeatedly emphasized that there are no weapons on board.

The activists also want to draw international attention to the humanitarian situation on the ground.

The Madleen set sail from Sicily a week ago and aims to reach the coast on Monday. On Sunday afternoon, the ship was less than 300 kilometres from its destination, north of the Egyptian coast.

In videos posted on Instagram, the group has accused Israel of jamming its communication devices in order to intercept the ship or even prepare an attack.