Israel suggests it will block Greta Thunberg’s aid ship from reaching Gaza

Israel has suggested that it will block a ship carrying activists including Greta Thunberg from delivering aid to Gaza.

The climate campaigner set sail from a port in Sicily on Sunday with 11 other activists to deliver a “symbolic” amount of aid to the enclave, which is in the grip of a humanitarian crisis.

But Brigadier General Effie Edfrin, an Israeli army spokesperson, suggested Israel may confront the boat before it reaches the shores of the Gaza Strip.

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“For this case as well, we are prepared,” he told The Times. “We have gained experience in recent years.”

In 2010, Israel sparked international outrage after its special forces killed nine people onboard an aid flotilla bound for Gaza.

Another boat operated by the group, the Conscience, was hit by two drones just outside Maltese territorial waters in early May.

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The boat, named the Madleen, is operated by the activist group Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC). Actor Liam Cunningham is also onboard the vessel.

The ship has so far travelled 381 nautical miles since leaving the port of Catania, according to Al Jazeera.

"We are doing this because no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying, because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity," Thunberg, 22, told reporters at a conference before the departure.

She added that "no matter how dangerous this mission is, it is nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the lives being genocised".

Israel has strongly rejected allegations that a genocide is taking place in Gaza.

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Israel ended an 11-week of blockade on Gaza in May following mounting global pressure, with limited UN-led operations allowed to resume.

On Wednesday, the president of the Red Cross warned that the situation in Gaza had become “worse than hell on earth” as distribution centres closed for a day.

The controversial US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) announced late on Tuesday night it was temporarily shutting down operations in the strip after dozens of Palestinians were killed attempting to access its distribution centres.

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The ICRC said that at least 27 people were killed and dozens injured attempting to access one of the sites on Tuesday. The Israeli military said it opened fire on a group of people it viewed as a threat near one of the centres, though the GHF claimed the incident happened “well beyond” its distribution point.

The GHF has been boycotted by the UN and other aid groups, who have suggested it is not independent due its backing by the Israeli government.