A boat with 12 activists attempting to break Israel’s unlawful blockade of Gaza, intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters, approached the Ashdod port, reports said Monday.
The passengers, including Greta Thunberg and other activists, who were abducted by Israeli forces, will be transferred to a detention facility ahead of deportation from Israel, according to Israeli officials.
Israel's navy escorted the Madleen, which organizers said was intercepted in international waters overnight, to the Israeli port, reaching Ashdod at around 8:45 p.m. (1745 GMT), according to an AFP photographer.
The boat was carrying a small shipment of humanitarian aid, including rice and baby formula. The Foreign Ministry said it would be taken to Gaza.
Israel has imposed a naval blockade on the coastal enclave since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007, saying it aims to stop weapons from reaching the Palestinian resistance group.
The blockade has remained in place through conflicts, including the ongoing genocidal war since Oct. 7 has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to health officials, and destroyed most of the homes of its 2.3 million residents.
At the start of March this year, Israel also sealed off Gaza by land, letting no supplies in for three months, claiming that Hamas was diverting aid.
Over the past two weeks, it has let in some food to be distributed by an Israeli-backed group. Scores of hungry Palestinians have been killed trying to reach it.
