Gaza-bound activist boat carrying Greta Thunberg towed to Israel

Good morning, I'm Choi Chi-hee, and this is the World Now.

Israeli naval forces have intercepted a yacht carrying climate activist Greta Thunberg and 11 others while it was attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The Israeli navy boarded the British-flagged yacht Madleen, operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition, detaining Thunberg and a French lawmaker, among those who were onboard.

On early Monday, the vessel was seized approximately 185 kilometers from Gaza in international waters and escorted into a port in Israel by the evening.

Israeli officials confirmed the activists were unharmed and will be deported after undergoing medical checks. They said that the yacht's cargo of symbolic aid such as baby formula, and medical kits, will enter Gaza through official Israeli aid channels.

While Thunberg denounced the interception as "kidnapping," Israel dismissed the mission as a "media stunt" and called the aid boat a "selfie yacht."

Governments in Sweden, France, and Spain have lodged consular requests and France's President Macron has demanded swift repatriation.

The boat departed from Italy on June 1 to raise awareness of the conditions in Gaza.