Made her kiss Zionist flag
Reports are emerging that Israeli authorities have abused activist Greta Thunberg while illegally holding her in detention.
Greta Thunberg beaten by Israeli authorities
On Saturday 4 October, the Israeli occupation authorities deported 137 of the kidnapped international solidarity activists who participated in the Global Sumud Flotilla to break the humanitarian siege on Gaza, in the second deportation operation in a matter of days, after returning four Italians to their country on Friday 3 October.
One of the deported activists who arrived at Istanbul airport on Saturday recounted shocking details of what he described as ‘brutal assaults’ on some activists during their detention, telling reporters:
They dragged little Greta (Thunberg) by her hair in front of our eyes, beat her, and forced her to kiss the Israeli flag. They did everything imaginable to her as a warning to others.
She’s still a little kid. They made her suffer.
⚡️BREAKING: Turkish activist and Sumud Flotilla participant Ersin Celik:
“They [Israelis] dragged little Greta [Thunberg] by her hair before our eyes, beat her, and forced her to kiss the Israeli flag. They did everything imaginable to her, as a warning to others,” pic.twitter.com/gV6SeMZr7U
— Suppressed News. (@SuppressedNws1) October 4, 2025
Separately, the Guardian reported that an email to Swedish authorities said Greta Thunberg was suffering from:
dehydration. She has received insufficient amounts of both water and food. She also stated that she had developed rashes which she suspects were caused by bedbugs. She spoke of harsh treatment and said she had been sitting for long periods on hard surfaces.
Meanwhile, other released activists spoke of similar degrading treatment.
Turkish activist Samanur Sonmaz Yaman, a member of the flotilla, recounts details of the occupation’s oppression and abuse of veiled women from the boats:
Occupation soldiers ripped off our headscarves during our arrest and took them from us, and our non-veiled friends gave us their shirts to cover our heads.
The Turkish activist from the Freedom Flotilla, Semanur Sonmez Yaman :
“ The occupation soldiers store their hijabs off the female detainees in prison, and our non-veiled friends offered their shirts to them so they could cover their heads “ . https://t.co/z3vswy4BBX— نجلاء . (@Gredtoo) October 4, 2025
Adalah, the legal centre that monitors the cases of detainees, said that detention conditions at Ketziot prison in the Negev desert are ‘deteriorating alarmingly,’ amid reports of ill-treatment and violence against some detainees.
A spokesperson for the organisation said that it is difficult at this stage to provide a comprehensive assessment, but confirmed that the mistreatment primarily affects non-European detainees, especially those whose countries do not have diplomatic missions in Israel.
Ongoing Israeli violence
This incident is the latest chapter in the confrontation between Israel and the international solidarity flotillas that recently set sail in an attempt to break the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip for more than 18 years, amid growing international warnings about targeting solidarity activists and civil society activists, and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Strip, which is suffering from famine and shortages of medicine and fuel.
Israel intercepted 40 ships in the Global Solidarity Flotilla that set sail to reach Gaza to break the blockade and deliver humanitarian aid amid the ongoing war of extermination on Gaza, which is now entering its third year.
