ISLAMABAD: Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg has told Swedish officials she faced harsh treatment while detained in Israeli custody, following her arrest during a flotilla carrying aid to Gaza, according to The Guardian.
In correspondence shared by the Swedish foreign ministry, an official who visited Thunberg in prison said she reported being held in a cell infested with bedbugs and lacking adequate food and water.
Greta Thunberg is being tortured in Israeli captivity, as revealed by fellow activists:
“They dragged little Greta 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/QgKZrKA4uZ
— Pop Base (@PopBase) October 5, 2025
“The embassy has been able to meet with Greta,” the email reads. “She informed of 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.”
Harsh treatment
Another detainee reportedly told an embassy that Thunberg had been forced to hold unidentified flags while being photographed. The concern was echoed by other flotilla members.
Turkish activist Ersin Çelik, speaking to Anadolu, said: “They 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.”
JUST IN: Greta Thunberg told Swedish officials she is facing harsh treatment in Israeli custody after being abducted by Israel
Swedish Foreign Ministry said Thunberg reported dehydration, lack of food and water, and rashes from bedbug-infested cells, adding she was forced to sit… pic.twitter.com/WBaoiOQmYh
— Sulaiman Ahmed (@ShaykhSulaiman_) October 4, 2025
Lorenzo D’Agostino, a journalist on the flotilla, said she was “wrapped in the Israeli flag and paraded like a trophy”.
Thunberg was among 437 people on the Global Sumud flotilla, comprising over 40 boats aiming to breach Israel’s 16-year blockade of Gaza. Between Thursday and Friday, Israeli forces intercepted all vessels and detained everyone on board. Most are being held at Ketziot prison in the Negev desert, typically used for Palestinian security prisoners.
Legal rights
Adalah, an Israeli legal rights NGO, claimed detainees were denied water, sanitation, medical aid, and legal access — “in clear breach” of their rights. Thunberg was reportedly handed “a packet of crisps… shown to the cameras.”
They kidnapped Greta Thunberg in international waters, transferred her to the colony, and tortured her as a warning to others. https://t.co/4oMNdeAn3H
— Paweł Wargan (@pawelwargan) October 4, 2025
Israel’s national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called the activists “terrorists” during a visit to Ashdod. “These are the terrorists of the flotilla,” he said in a video.
Thunberg was asked to sign a document but refused, unsure of its content.
Israel’s embassy denied all mistreatment claims, calling them “complete lies”, stating detainees had access to “water, food and toilets” and that “all their legal rights” were upheld.
