YAHOO NEWS! Greta Thunberg claims she was ‘kicked and had wh*** written on her suitcase’ in Israeli detention.

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Greta Thunberg Said Guards Took Selfies With Her After She Was Forced To Undress As She Detailed The Abuse She Allegedly Endured In An Israeli Prison

Stephanie Soteriou
Fri, October 17, 2025 at 10:29 AM EDT·8 min read
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Greta Thunberg Said Guards Took Selfies With Her After She Was Forced To Undress As She Detailed The Abuse She Allegedly Endured In An Israeli Prison
In early September, the Global Sumud Flotilla set off from Barcelona with Greta Thunberg and around 500 other activists from around the world on board, with the intention of breaking Israel’s siege on Gaza and delivering much-needed humanitarian aid and food to the people of Palestine.
Mario Wurzburger / Getty Images
Mario Wurzburger / Getty Images
The flotilla’s departure came shortly before a two-year United Nations investigation ruled that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. On Sept. 16, the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry shared its findings that Israel has “flagrantly disregarded” international law and “orchestrated a genocidal campaign for almost two years.”
Anadolu / Getty Images
Anadolu / Getty Images
Unfortunately, the Global Sumud Flotilla did not make it to Gaza, with the Israeli navy intercepting it on Oct. 1, boarding several vessels, and detaining many of the activists — including Greta.
Anadolu / Getty Images
Anadolu / Getty Images

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After Greta and other activists were taken by Israel, fellow flotilla participant Ersin Çelik told Anadolu news agency: “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.”
Nurphoto / Getty Images
Nurphoto / Getty Images
Greta was deported from Israeli detention on Oct. 6, and she initially did not speak up about her experience, repeatedly refocusing the conversation back to the Palestinians when she was asked about what had happened during her detainment.
Milos Bicanski / Getty Images
Milos Bicanski / Getty Images
However, earlier this week, she gave an in-depth interview with Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, where she alleged horrific mistreatment at the hands of Israeli authorities during her five days in captivity, which included being stripped and humiliated, psychological torture, and physical abuse.
The moment that men with covered faces and automatic weapons boarded Greta’s boat was watched live by people all over the world as it was broadcast through the flotilla’s own channels, and Greta shared that she and her fellow activists were then taken to a lower deck where they were made to sit in a circle without moving while the boat was taken to land. As she got off the boat, Greta says “a bunch of police officers” grabbed her, pulled her to the ground, and threw an Israeli flag over her. After this, she said, everything went “from zero to a hundred.”
Mario Wurzburger / Getty Images

The moment that men with covered faces and automatic weapons boarded Greta’s boat was watched live by people all over the world as it was broadcast through the flotilla’s own channels, and Greta shared that she and her fellow activists were then taken to a lower deck where they were made to sit in a circle without moving while the boat was taken to land.

As she got off the boat, Greta says “a bunch of police officers” grabbed her, pulled her to the ground, and threw an Israeli flag over her. After this, she said, everything went “from zero to a hundred.”
“It was kind of dystopian. I saw maybe 50 people sitting in a row on their knees with handcuffs and their foreheads against the ground,” she said of her arrival at the detention centre. “They dragged me to the opposite side from where the others were sitting, and I had the flag around me the whole time. They hit and kicked me.”
Lluis Gene / Getty Images
Lluis Gene / Getty Images

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Greta alleges that the Israeli guards had even learned insults in her native Swedish, and repeatedly called her “Lilla hora,” which translates to “little whore,” and “Hora Greta,” which translates to “whore Greta.”
Fredrik Sandberg / Getty Images
Fredrik Sandberg / Getty Images
She claimed that the police forced her to sit in a corner and placed an Israeli flag next to her, recalling: “The flag was placed so that it would touch me. When it fluttered and touched me, they shouted ‘Don’t touch the flag’ and kicked me in the side. After a while, my hands were tied with cable ties, very tightly. A bunch of guards lined up to take selfies with me while I was sitting like that.”
Armando Babani / Getty Images
Armando Babani / Getty Images
Greta said that authorities made her watch as they slowly cut up all of her personal belongings with a knife, and that she was kicked by a guard any time she lifted her head from the ground while others were being “thrown to the ground and beaten.” She was then taken to a building to be searched and undressed.
Milos Bicanski / Getty Images
Milos Bicanski / Getty Images

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“The guards have no empathy or humanity, and they keep taking selfies with me,” she alleged. “There’s a lot I don’t remember. So much is happening at once. You’re in shock. You’re in pain, but you go into a state of trying to stay calm.”
Yassine Mahjoub / Getty Images
Yassine Mahjoub / Getty Images
When Greta refused to sign papers stating that she had entered Israel illegally, among other things, her hands were allegedly tied together with cable. She was blindfolded, and put in a freezing cold cell inside a car alongside other prisoners as they were driven to a prison.
Lluis Gene / Getty Images
Lluis Gene / Getty Images
Once outside, Greta says she was forced to strip again. “It was mockery, rough handling, and everything was filmed,” she claimed. “Everything they do is extremely violent. People's medications were thrown into the trash can in front of their eyes. Heart medication, cancer medication, insulin.”
Greta also alleges that they hardly received any food or water during their days in captivity, and were forced to drink from the tap in the toilet sink where “something brown flows,” with many prisoners becoming ill. 
Europa Press News / Getty Images

Greta also alleges that they hardly received any food or water during their days in captivity, and were forced to drink from the tap in the toilet sink where “something brown flows,” with many prisoners becoming ill.
“You felt that you couldn’t ‘afford’ to cry because you were so dehydrated,” she said. “It was so hot, like 40 degrees [104°F]. We begged the whole time: ‘Can we have water? Can we have water?’ In the end, we screamed. The guards walked in front of the bars the whole time, laughing and holding up their water bottles. They threw the bottles with water in them into the trash cans in front of us.”
Thomas Lohnes / Getty Images
Thomas Lohnes / Getty Images
At one point, Greta alleged, around 60 people were put in a small cage outside in the hot sun, with most not having room to sit down. As people fainted, the others banged on the cage and asked for a doctor — at this point, guards are said to have threatened to “gas” the prisoners. Greta said: “It was standard for them to say that. They held up a gas cylinder and threatened to press it against us.”
In the night, guards would apparently wake the prisoners by regularly shaking the bars, shining a flashlight, and forcing everybody to stand up. Greta alleges that she was also placed in a bug-infested isolation cell at one point.Representatives from the Swedish embassy in Israel did not come to meet with the Swedish prisoners for three days, but Greta says that they “didn’t do anything.” She added: “We were together and told them about the treatment we received. About the lack of food, water, about the abuse. The torture. We showed them the physical injuries we had – bruises and scratches.
Thomas Lohnes / Getty Images

In the night, guards would apparently wake the prisoners by regularly shaking the bars, shining a flashlight, and forcing everybody to stand up. Greta alleges that she was also placed in a bug-infested isolation cell at one point.

Representatives from the Swedish embassy in Israel did not come to meet with the Swedish prisoners for three days, but Greta says that they “didn’t do anything.” She added: “We were together and told them about the treatment we received. About the lack of food, water, about the abuse. The torture. We showed them the physical injuries we had – bruises and scratches."

“We said over and over again: we need water,” Greta said. “The embassy staff said: ’We’ll make a note of that.’ One of us, Vincent, said: 'Next time we meet you, you must bring water.’”

She claims that the embassy staff did not return for another two days and didn’t bring any water apart from a half-empty one of their own, which the prisoners gave to Vincent, who “was in the worst shape.”

Greta was released and deported to Greece after five days in captivity. When her suitcase was returned to her, “Whore Greta” had been written on it in large letters, as well as a Star of David and an erect penis.

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“This is not about me or the others from the flotilla. There are thousands of Palestinians, hundreds of whom are children, who are being held without trial right now, and many of them are most likely being tortured,” Greta told Aftonbladet. “What we have been through is only a small, small part of what Palestinians have experienced. On the walls of our prison cells, we saw bullet holes with bloodstains and messages carved into the walls by Palestinian prisoners who had been there before us.”
Europa Press News / Getty Images
Europa Press News / Getty Images
She went on: “This shows that if Israel, with the whole world watching, can treat a well-known, white person with a Swedish passport this way, just imagine what they do to Palestinians behind closed doors.”
Paul S. Amundsen / Getty Images
Paul S. Amundsen / Getty Images
Israeli authorities have denied Greta’s allegations, with the foreign minister saying in a statement to the Telegraph: “All of her legal rights were fully upheld. Interestingly enough, Greta herself refused to expedite her deportation and insisted on prolonging her stay in custody. She also never lodged any complaint with the Israeli authorities regarding these ludicrous and baseless allegations – because they simply never happened.”
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Up next
The Independent
Greta Thunberg claims she was ‘kicked and had wh*** written on her suitcase’ in Israeli detention
Alex Croft
Fri, October 17, 2025 at 1:23 AM EDT·3 min read
91
Greta Thunberg claims she was ‘kicked and had wh*** written on her suitcase’ in Israeli detention

Greta Thunberg claims she was “hit and kicked” while in Israeli custody after she was detained from her Gaza aid flotilla.

The young Swedish activist has accused Israeli guards of having “no empathy or humanity”, recalled seeing dozens of people in handcuffs with their foreheads on the ground, and says she had to “beg” for water while in 40C heat.

Thunberg also claimed Israeli guards wrote the words “wh***” and drew images of a penis and the Star of David on her suitcase. Israel has hit back at the activist and claimed her allegations are “ludicrous and baseless”.

The 22-year-old was detained after attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza on dozens of vessels, in a breach of Israel’s naval blockade of the flattened enclave. She was deported on 6 October.
Greta Thunberg alleges being kicked in Israeli detention, though the country’s officials deny the claims (Reuters)
Greta Thunberg alleges being kicked in Israeli detention, though the country’s officials deny the claims (Reuters)

She recalled seeing a “dystopian” area with iron fences, where around 50 detainees had been tied up and were sitting with their foreheads “against the ground”.

“They dragged me to the opposite side from where the others were sitting, and I had the flag around me the whole time. They hit and kicked me,” she told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.

“There’s a lot I don’t remember. So much is happening at once. You’re in shock, you’re in pain, but you go into a state of trying to stay calm,” she said. The Israeli guards also took selfies with her while she was in prison, she said.

Israeli authorities strongly deny Thunberg’s claims. The foreign ministry said in a statement to The Telegraph: “All of her legal rights were fully upheld. Interestingly enough, Greta herself refused to expedite her deportation and insisted on prolonging her stay in custody. She also never lodged any complaint with the Israeli authorities regarding these ludicrous and baseless allegations – because they simply never happened.”
Thunberg raises her fist upon arrival in Athens alongside activists who were sailing aboard the Gaza aid flotilla (AFP/Getty)
Thunberg raises her fist upon arrival in Athens alongside activists who were sailing aboard the Gaza aid flotilla (AFP/Getty)

The Independent has contacted the Israeli foreign ministry and the Israel Defense Force (IDF) for further comment.

Thunberg also claimed the guards laughed at her while holding water bottles as she was begging for water in 40C heat in the prison.

“When people fainted, we banged on the cages and asked for a doctor. Then the guards came and said: ‘We’re going to gas you.’ It was standard for them to say that. They held up a gas cylinder and threatened to press it against us,” she said.

“During the nights, guards regularly came by and shook the bars, shining flashlights, and several times a night they came in and forced everyone to stand up.”
Thunberg, Brazilian activist Thiago Avila and others, after Israel intercepted some of the vessels of the Global Sumud Flotilla, aiming to reach Gaza (Reuters)
Thunberg, Brazilian activist Thiago Avila and others, after Israel intercepted some of the vessels of the Global Sumud Flotilla, aiming to reach Gaza (Reuters)

She was detained in early October after the flotilla had set sail in August, with more than 40 vessels and 500 activists on board looking to deliver aid to Gaza.

The Israeli navy had earlier warned the activists via radio to turn back, as they risked “entering an active warzone”, adding: “If you continue and attempt to break the naval blockade, we will stop your vessel.”

The warning was effectively ignored and the Israeli military stormed the vessels and seized the activists, including Thunberg, Nelson Mandela’s grandson, Mandla Mandela, and several European politicians.
Up next
RFI
Why haven't Uefa and Fifa suspended Israel from international competitions?
RFI
Sat, October 18, 2025 at 8:02 AM EDT·9 min read
Supporters of Turkish club Galatasaray hold a banner in support of the Palestinian people before the UEFA Europa League group stage match against Tottenham in Istanbul on 7 November, 2024.

Pressure is mounting on international football authorities to exclude the Israeli national team from their tournaments, following the United Nations declaration that Israel has committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. But despite protests by fans and players, governing bodies show few signs of taking a stand.

One week a UN inquiry concluded on 16 September that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, another group of experts appointed by the UN published their own statement – calling for Israel to be excluded from international football.

Addressing their statement to Uefa and Fifa – football's European and international governing bodies, respectively – 30 experts called on them to suspend Israel "as a necessary response to address the ongoing genocide in the occupied Palestinian territory".

"Sporting bodies must not turn a blind eye to grave human rights violations," they declared.
Palestinian football targeted

The genocide in Gaza is one in which Palestinian athletes have been deliberately targeted. Over the past two years, the Israeli army has killed some 898 Palestinian athletes – including at least 420 footballers.

Among them were Hani Al-Masdar, assistant coach of the Palestinian national football team; Mohammed Barakat, star striker of the national team; and Suleiman Al-Obeid, known as the "Palestinian Pelé", who was killed on 6 August while waiting for humanitarian aid in the southern Gaza Strip.

The death of Al-Obeid caused international outrage. Uefa posted on X: "Farewell to Suleiman al-Obeid, the 'Palestinian Pelé'. A talent who gave hope to countless children, even in the darkest of times."

The tribute prompted Liverpool forward and captain of the Egyptian national team Mohamed Salah to respond: "Can you tell us how he died, where, and why?"

Israel has also attacked almost 290 sports facilities in two years in the Palestinian enclave and the occupied West Bank.

Opened in 1952 and rebuilt many times following Israeli attacks, Gaza City's 9,000-seat Yarmouk Stadium became a refuge at the start of the latest conflict.

But in December 2023, the Israeli army entered the stadium and turned it into an interrogation site – or "torture camp", in the words of Nader Jayousi, deputy secretary of the Palestinian Olympic Committee.

It was subsequently demolished, its ruins becoming a refugee camp for displaced Gazans.

On 5 October this year, the headquarters of the Palestinian Football Association (PFA), located in East Jerusalem beside the national team’s Faisal Al-Husseini stadium, were targeted by tear gas and sound grenades fired by the Israeli army.

The PFA said in a statement: "These actions are not isolated incidents but part of a systematic policy of targeting Palestinian sport, in direct contravention of the principles enshrined in the Fifa statutes, the Uefa regulations, and the Olympic Charter, all of which are founded on respect for human dignity, equality, and peace."
Fans, players and politicians protest

Palestinian rights activists have been calling for Israel to be banned from global football competitions for several decades – and since the start of the 2023 war, despite restrictions, football fans have been displaying banners and flags in support of the Palestinian people in stadiums around the world.

Earlier this month, Spanish football club Athletic Bilbao organised a pre-match ceremony as a show of solidarity with Palestinians at the San Mamés stadium, just before their La Liga match against Real Mallorca.

Eleven Palestinian refugees living in Spain, alongside representatives of the UN's Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA, walked on to the pitch as Athletic fans waved Palestinian flags and gave them a standing ovation.

In September, 48 athletes under the banner Athletes 4 Peace, including French football international Paul Pogba and Moroccan international Hakim Ziyech, signed an open letter denouncing the genocide in Gaza and calling for the exclusion of Israeli teams from competitions organised by Uefa.

Game Over Israel is another movement waging an international campaign, mobilising sports stars and fan groups alongside human rights organisations. On 16 September, their slogan "Soccer federations: boycott Israel" was beamed from a billboard in New York's Times Square. New York is set to host eight matches in the World Cup next year, including the final.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has also called for Israel to be excluded from tournaments, citing the difference with how Russia has been treated since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. "Israel cannot continue to use any international platform to whitewash its image," he told elected representatives of his Socialist Workers' Party.

Patxi López, leader of the Socialist group in parliament, said that Spain would be prepared to boycott the 2026 World Cup if Israel qualifies.

The president of the Israel Football Association (IFA), Moshe Zuares, responded in French newspaper Le Parisien, saying: "I heard the Spanish prime minister's stupid threat. I suppose he made it after consulting the table and realising that we would not qualify for the World Cup."

On 14 October, several thousand demonstrators gathered in Udine, Italy, to protest the genocide before the kick-off of a qualifier between Italy and Israel – a match that saw the end of Israel's World Cup hopes with a 3-0 defeat. The country has only qualified for the tournament once – for Mexico 1970, at which it was eliminated in the group stage.
Clubs cautious

Fan protests aside, Turkey's football federation is the only Uefa member so far to publicly call for Israel to be suspended from international matches. It has described the situation in Gaza as "inhumane and unacceptable".

If a team withdraws from a match against any side, the boycotters earn an automatic 3-0 defeat. "But if no one is doing this with regard to Israel, it is mainly because they are all afraid of being labelled antisemitic," notes Romain Molina, an investigative journalist and football specialist.

"Another point to note is that many football club owners have ties to Israel. One of the greatest football agents in history is Israeli, Pini Zahavi. He was the one who brought the Barça team to Israel [for the 2013 "Peace Tour"], and it was a huge diplomatic victory for Israel to see Neymar, Messi and others at the Wailing Wall."

At the Uefa Super Cup final between Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain on 13 August, a banner reading "Stop killing children. Stop killing civilians" was displayed on the pitch in front of the players as they lined up before kick-off.

However, Uefa's gesture met with criticism for not going far enough. "To name the crime but not the perpetrator is an act of cowardice," said Shaista Aziz of Amnesty International.

Saving South Africa’s forgotten story of sport that defied apartheid
Fifa statutes

On 1 October, Amnesty called on Fifa and Uefa to suspend the IFA from their tournaments until it bans at least six clubs based in illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory from continuing to play in Israeli leagues.

Article 64.2 of Fifa's statutes stipulates that "member associations and their clubs may not play on the territory of another member association without the latter’s approval".

Article 3 is similarly clear: "Fifa is committed to respecting all internationally recognised human rights and shall strive to promote the protection of these rights."

The PFA filed an official complaint with Fifa in March 2024. It cited Israel's actions in Gaza as well as the inclusion of clubs from Israeli settlements and the failure of IFA to take action against discrimination and racism.

Fifa has repeatedly postponed a vote on Palestine's motion to ban Israel from the international stage, saying its experts are still investigating.
Russian precedent

Several countries have previously been suspended by footballing bodies – South Africa during apartheid, Yugoslavia during the Yugoslav wars and most recently, Russia.

Four days after its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Uefa and Fifa jointly excluded Russian clubs and the national team from international competitions, a sanction that is still in force.

However, a source told French daily Le Monde: "Russia's suspension was not a political decision. It was due to the fact that more than 40 federations refused to play against the Russians. The decision was therefore taken to ensure the integrity of the competitions. There is currently no such pressure regarding Israel."

In Molina's view: "They said to themselves, 'this could be dangerous for our own power, so we'll ban Russia'. That wasn't the case for Israel. So as long as that doesn't happen, Israel won't be suspended. They're always looking for excuses."

European football chiefs ban Russian teams from international tournaments
Trump and Infantino

At the end of September, according to revelations in British daily The Times, a majority of Uefa committee members were "in favour of suspending" Israel in response to the UN declaration of genocide.

A meeting was scheduled to decide on the matter, but was put on hold due to the presentation of US President Donald Trump's peace plan for Gaza, with Sky News reporting: "There is a belief among leaders in European football now that imposing sporting sanctions on Israel would not be the right move in the middle of peace talks."

Molina sees it differently. "Trump's proposal does not absolve Uefa and Fifa from making decisions. In fact, they are using it as an excuse not to decide," he says. "It's just a matter of electoral interest. They don't care about the war."

The United States, host of the 2026 World Cup alongside Mexico and Canada, "will absolutely work to fully stop any effort to attempt to ban Israel’s national soccer team from the World Cup", a US State Department spokesperson told the New York Times on 25 September – although, officially, governments have no role in the decisions of Fifa or Uefa.

Trump has a close relationship with Fifa boss Gianni Infantino, who was present on 13 October in Sharm el-Sheikh for the signing of the Gaza peace plan – at the US president's invitation.

Trump says Fifa chief would back moving World Cup games

On 2 October, Fifa issued a statement in which Infantino stressed the importance of promoting "peace and unity", without mentioning Israel or the IFA.

“At Fifa, we are committed to using the power of football to bring people together in a divided world. Our thoughts are with those who are suffering in the many conflicts that exist around the world today," he said, adding: "Fifa cannot solve geopolitical problems."

Molina, however, says that Infantino "has politicised a sporting institution like never before".

"He dreams of winning the Nobel Prize before becoming secretary-general of the United Nations," jokes Molina. "At the Fifa annual congress a few months ago, he arrived two hours late because he was on tour with Donald Trump.

"As long as Trump is around, Infantino won't budge an inch."

This article has been adapted from the original version in French by Anne Bernas.

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