Israel vows to prevent aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg, other activists from reaching Gaza
Tel Aviv, Jun 8 (AP): Israel's government on Sunday vowed to prevent an aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists from reaching the Gaza Strip.
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.
Thunberg, a climate campaigner, is among 12 activists aboard the Madleen, which is operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. The vessel departed Sicily last Sunday on a mission that aims to break the sea blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid, while raising awareness over the growing humanitarian crisis 20 months into the Israel-Hamas war.
The activists had said they planned to reach Gaza's territorial waters as early as Sunday.
Thiago Ávila, a Brazilian activist on board the boat, posted a video on social media Sunday afternoon saying someone appeared to be jamming their tracking and communication devices about 160 nautical miles from Gaza.
Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, is among the others onboard. She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israeli policies toward the Palestinians.
After a 2½-month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month, but humanitarian workers have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive.
An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group's vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta. The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.
Israel and Egypt have imposed varying degrees of blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007. Critics of the blockade say it amounts to collective punishment of Gaza's roughly 2 million Palestinians.
Israel sealed Gaza off from all aid in the early days of the war ignited by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, but later relented under US pressure.
In early March, shortly before Israel ended a ceasefire with Hamas, the country again blocked all imports, including food, fuel and medicine.
Hamas-led group killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 7 attack and abducted 251 hostages, more than half of whom have since been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Hamas is still holding 55 hostages, more than half of them believed to be dead.
Israel's military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which has said women and children make up most of the dead. It doesn't say whether those killed are civilians or combatants.
The war has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90 per cent of the territory's population, leaving people there almost completely dependent on international aid.
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Moodbidri Police Inspector accused of sexual harassment; Panambur ACP to investigate
Mangaluru: The City Police Commissioner has directed the Mangaluru (North) Assistant Commissioner of Police to investigate a complaint filed by the wife of a man arrested by Moodbidri Police accusing the station inspector on grounds of sexual harassment.
The complainant’s husband has reportedly been arrested for embezzling money, with Moodbidri Police filing a case against him. The wife has now said that Moodbidri Police Station Inspector Sandesh BG told her that he would produce a rowdy-sheet against her husband unless she had sex with him and paid him Rs 25 lakh.
Several TV channels are also learned to have carried the news of her complaint on Monday. The officers of the State Women’s Commission, who noticed the news, reportedly approached the City Police Commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy and requested him to get the matter probed.
Speaking to reporters, Reddy denied having received any complaint filed by a woman against the Moodbidri Inspector. “We will probe the matter and take immediate action upon receiving any such complaint. In the backdrop of the alleged complaint filed against the Moodbidri Inspector, I have directed Panambur ACP Shrikanth to investigate and submit a report. Immediate legal action will be taken as soon as we get the report,” he said.
The senior officer further said, “The complainant is not on good terms with her sister and has also accused the inspector of having been biased in favour of her sister. The matter is in court but we have taken no action against the inspector since he has been carrying out his duties diligently.”
The Commissioner also clarified that, while the woman showed a video clip of the Moodbidri Inspector jumping a wall, the Police Department is unable to take action until the owner of the house files a complaint in the matter.
Reddy added that the complainant had not produced any audio clip as evidence.
