‘We cannot achieve justice if we exclude Gaza’: Activist Greta Thunberg

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has criticized the international community for failing to end the ongoing genocide in Gaza, warning that true justice cannot be achieved while the plight of Palestinians is ignored.

In an interview with Novara Media on Friday, Thunberg emphasized that her climate activism does not interfere with her care for Gaza and Palestine.

“If you care about a habitable planet you should also care about humans. I’m not a climate activist because I want to save trees or frogs,” she said.

She explained that her defense of Palestinian rights is rooted in her being human and having “common sense” and “basic values.”

“We can’t pretend to care about the climate crisis while we ignore the suffering and oppression of people.”

She added that if images of the daily live-streamed slaughter in Gaza don’t motivate the world to take action, then “how can we expect the world to take a few steps back and act to prevent an ecological and climate break down.”

The young climate activist noted that such a view of justice stems from a deeply rooted racist approach in the international decision-making arena, particularly among powerful states.

“If we only care about white children’s future, that’s not caring about justice.”

She further stated that Palestinians know best that destroying their habitat and the environmental destruction of Palestine through war, occupation, and large emissions go hand in hand with justice.

“That,” she said, “is ecological warfare aimed at depriving Palestinians of the means of sustaining life.”

On August 31, Thunberg will sail to Gaza from Barcelona with the Global Sumud Flotilla, joining thousands of activists in the largest maritime mission ever organized to break Israel’s siege.

Thunberg said that the project is part of a global uprising of people standing up and trying to break the Israeli siege against Gaza.

“When our governments fail to step up, the people will take their place, and their complicity in the genocide in Gaza is not something we stand for,” she added.

Devil's advocate: How Western media whitewashed Israel’s attack on Gaza-bound aid ship

Western media whitewashed the unwarranted and illegal Israeli attack on the Gaza-bound aid ship Madleen, siding with the aggressor and distorting the truth.

Dozens of boats carrying hundreds of activists from as many as 44 nations are set to take part in the Global Sumud Flotilla.

It is the latest and largest Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) mission to set sail for Gaza in an attempt to break Israel’s US-backed genocidal siege on the embattled Palestinian territory.

Sumud means “perseverance” in Arabic—as it attempts to run Israel’s naval blockade and deliver desperately needed humanitarian aid, including food, medicines, and baby formula to the starving people of Gaza.

FFC has attempted numerous times to break Israel’s blockade on Gaza via sea and deliver aid to Palestinians there.

In July, Israeli forces intercepted the Handala, a Gaza-bound FFC ship carrying aid and activists.

The unarmed boat was boarded by Israeli forces, its passengers abducted, and its cargo seized, FFC said at the time.

In June, the Madleen ship, another Gaza-bound vessel launched by FFC, was intercepted by the Israeli military in international waters, and activists on board, including Thunberg, were kidnapped by the regime forces.

In May, the Conscience was struck twice by Israeli drones, just 25km off the coast of Malta.

The attack triggered a fire and caused a significant breach in the hull, forcing the 30 activists on board into a desperate effort to bail out water and keep the ship afloat.

Earlier this month, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) confirmed that famine is occurring in the Gaza Governorate as of August 15.

Currently, over half a million Palestinians face starvation; by next month, the number could exceed 640,000.

Gaza’s Health Ministry has recorded five deaths due to the Israeli-imposed famine and malnutrition in the past 24 hours, including two children, bringing the total number of hunger-related deaths to 322, including 121 children.

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