‘Bed bugs, little food’: Greta Thunberg alleges mistreatment by Israeli custody after Gaza aid flotilla arrest

According to reports in major international outlets, the 22-year-old told Swedish officials that she endured dehydration, lack of food, and unsanitary conditions during her detention.

Israel has not yet responded to the fresh allegations, though its foreign ministry earlier dismissed reports of detainee mistreatment as “complete lies.”

Thunberg was among 137 activists detained for participating in the flotilla and later deported.

The group arrived in Turkey on Saturday, where several participants spoke to media about their experience.

Two activists — Hazwani Helmi, a Malaysian national, and Windfield Beaver, an American citizen — told Reuters that Thunberg was mistreated by Israeli troops during detention.

Turkish journalist Ersin Celik, who joined the Gaza Sumud Flotilla, claimed he personally saw Israeli forces “torture Greta Thunberg,” alleging that she was “dragged on the ground” and “forced to kiss the Israeli flag.”

Italian journalist Lorenzo Agostino, another participant, echoed those claims, telling international media, “Greta Thunberg, a brave woman, is only 22 years old. She was humiliated and wrapped in an Israeli flag and exhibited like a trophy.”

The flotilla, which departed in late August, was the latest in a series of activist efforts to challenge Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza, a territory devastated by war since Hamas’s deadly assault on Israel in October 2023.

Israeli officials had condemned the mission as a publicity stunt and warned participants against violating what they called a “lawful naval blockade.”

Israel has come under mounting international criticism over the raid on the flotilla, in which its navy intercepted around 40 boats carrying aid and detained more than 450 people on board.