"Kidnapped in Int'l Waters": Israel Intercepts Gaza-Bound Aid Ship, Detains Greta Thunberg & Others

[Uncle Joe]

Eleven peace activists and one journalist on board the Gaza Freedom Flotilla ship, the "Madleen," were detained by Israeli soldiers as their ship carrying vital humanitarian aid for starving Palestinians approached Gaza. The ship was intercepted by Israeli forces in the middle of the night in international waters. Its supplies were seized and communications jammed. The unarmed activists will likely be transported to Israeli detention or "immediately deported," says Ann Wright, a U.S. military veteran who has participated in four Freedom Flotilla journeys and now serves on the steering committee of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. She calls on citizens of countries around the world to push for the activists' release and an end to Israel's war on Gaza.

Democracy Now! is an independent global news hour that airs on over 1,500 TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream at democracynow.org Mondays to Fridays 8-9 a.m. ET.

[underpants]

1. Ridiculous

[benpollard]

2. What a mess

[sheshe2]

3. KIDNAPPED!!!

Yolks! Inflammatory headline by Democracy Now, so typical of them.

Here is the real headline and a summary of facts:

Israel intercepts Gaza-bound aid ship, detaining Greta Thunberg and other prominent activists

“(The vessel) is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. The passengers are expected to return to their home countries,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in a post on X early Monday local time.

Israel plans to bring the detained activists to Ashdod port and then through a “quick deportation process” via Ben-Gurion Airport, according to a source familiar with the matter. They are expected to arrive in Ashdod on Monday evening, local time.

The foreign ministry also posted a video showing members of the “Madleen” crew sitting side by side wearing orange life jackets while a solider offers them bottled water and plastic-wrapped sandwiches. Thunberg can be seen sitting near the front of the group.

snip

Israel’s foreign ministry said the group “attempted to stage a media provocation whose sole purpose was to gain publicity.”

“There are ways to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip – they do not involve Instagram selfies,” it added.

.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/08/middleeast/freedom-flotilla-gaza-aid-ship-thunberg-intl-hnk


Kidnapped…Democracy Now is a hoot.

[Uncle Joe]

4. Democracy Now quoted all of the activists in their video statements. n/t

[sheshe2]

5. So Greta and her gang claimed they have been kidnapped?

How much is the ransom said kidnappers are asking for? Were they allowed to contact their families and plead with them to pay guickly because they feared for their lives? Or did they just sign on to their instagram accounts to chat with their fans?

[Uncle Joe]

6. If you had viewed the video, you would know they were pre-recorded for just such an event. n/t

[sheshe2]

8. I don't give them clicks.

Their headlines are always sensationalized to bait and inflame their audience. They were NOT Kidnapped.

This only takes away from the serious and heartbreaking situation of both Palestine and Israel. This was a stunt by Greta and gang, it was meticulously planned and orchestrated as shown dy your own statement here:

6. If you had viewed the video, you would know they were pre-recorded for just such an event. n/t

[Uncle Joe]

9. That's okay, you're giving them kicks.

[sheshe2]

12. Seriously? 😳

Wow, I didn’t realize you were DN, do you own or just manage the place? If your answer is no to both…then I did’t give them any clicks, just you on DU.

Have a great day, Uncle Joe.

[Uncle Joe]

13. "kicks"

Have a great day, sheshe

[sheshe2]

16. I am happy to keep your thread kicked, Uncle Joe.

[Gaugamela]

7. They were detained in international waters, which is normally considered an act of piracy

or an act of war. Before they were detained the Israeli forces used drones to drop some kind of white powder on the Madleen causing eye irritation. They also ordered the crew to drop their cell phones into the ocean. The term ‘kidnapped’ is apt. The boat is apparently being towed to Israel so Israeli authorities can “deport” the kidnapped victims and pretend it’s all legit. Of course CNN will whitewash the incident to cover for Israel’s typical thuggish lawlessness. It’s SOP for US media to pretend that international laws and treaties don’t apply to Israel.

[Goddessartist]

11. 💯 true

Just evil.

[Goddessartist]

10. Gabor Mate reaffirms his support for the Gaza Freedom Flotilla

https://youtube.com/shorts/RWxUM7E6LBE?si=LJgsN5JKoI7OZXJIhttps://youtube.com/shorts/RWxUM7E6LBE?si=LJgsN5JKoI7OZXJI

'Jewish Physician and infant holocaust survivor, Gabor Mate, reaffirms his support for the Gaza Freedom Flotilla.

Speaking from Poland near the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising memorial, Mate sends a message to the crew of the Madalyn.

He draws a parallel between their mission to Gaza and the historic resistance of the ghetto fighters.

“Even if you don't achieve your objective of reaching Gaza, which of course they will not let you, you have already won. You have already scored a great victory for humanity,” Mate concludes.

[Gaugamela]

14. Huge respect for Gabor Mate.

[Goddessartist]

15. He's wonderful. I admire him.

He's completely correct. I'm surprised that some think it was some publicity stunt (as Israel says), not being able to see the need of the Palestinians, and the brutal way they've been treated over the last 77 years as a problem, and the importance of this humanitarian act.

I stand with Gabor and the Palestinians' and the humans on the boat, sailing for humanity, now being illegally boarded and kidnapped by the rogue pariah state. Shame on the IOF.