Greta Thunberg’s Harrowing Account of Torture During Israeli Detention

Thursday, October 16, 2025

SAEDNEWS: Greta Thunberg Says She Was Detained, Beaten, Humiliated, and Denied Water and Medical Care After Israeli Navy Seized ‘Global Sumud’ Aid Fleet

Greta Thunberg’s Harrowing Account of Torture During Israeli Detention

According to Saed News’ political service, “They grabbed me, threw me to the ground, and threw the Israeli flag over my body. Then they separated me from the others. I was beaten, kicked, and all the while they had the flag wrapped around me.

They violently dragged me to a corner and said, ‘A special place for a special woman.’ Then they had learned a few Swedish words: ‘little whore’ and ‘Greta whore,’ which they repeated over and over.

They placed a flag next to me so it would constantly touch my body. Every time I made contact with it, they shouted, ‘Don’t touch the flag!’ and kicked me in the side. Then they tightly bound my hands with plastic cuffs. A few guards lined up and, while I sat motionless, took selfies with me, laughing.

They took me inside a building for a search. They removed my clothes. Their behavior was violent and degrading. They took photos and videos of me, laughed, and showed no trace of humanity. I don’t remember many things. I was in shock and in pain, but I just tried to stay calm.

It was extremely hot, close to 40 degrees Celsius. We kept asking for water, but they only laughed, raising their bottles in front of us, and sometimes even threw full bottles into the trash in front of us.

When some of us fainted, we banged on the bars and asked for a doctor. The guards would come and calmly say, ‘We’ll gas you now.’ They repeated this in a mocking tone, as if our pain and fear were a source of entertainment.

After all this, we finally spoke to the Swedish embassy staff. We told them what had happened: torture, abuse, thirst, and hunger. We showed them our wounds and bruises. But they did nothing. They only said, ‘We are here to listen to you.’

We again asked for water. They even saw the guards had bottles. They said, ‘We’ll note it.’ But when they returned two days later, they only brought one small half-full bottle. They gave it to my friend Vincent, who was in worse condition.

When I stepped forward and said, ‘If you leave now, they’ll hit us again,’ they said nothing and just left.

And I thought to myself: if Israel can treat me—a well-known white person with a Swedish passport—this way, what do they do behind closed doors to Palestinians?”