… on a quiet day, I can hear her breathing

Category: Greta Thunberg

  • Freedom Flotilla Sets Sail for Gaza Carrying Aid and Demands: ‘End the Blockade. End the Genocide’

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    Original article by Brett Wilkins republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

    Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg speaks surrounded by other participants in the latest Freedom Flotilla Coalition effort to deliver shipborne aid to Gaza, during a June 1, 2025 press conference in Catania, Italy. (Photo: Fabrizio Villa/Getty Images)

    “No matter how dangerous this mission is, it’s nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the live-streamed genocide,” said climate activist Greta Thunberg, who is aboard the Madleen.

    A dozen Palestine defenders including climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and a French lawmaker set sail from Sicily on Sunday aboard a boat carrying humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza, many of whom are starving amid Israel’s ongoing U.S.-backed genocidal assault and siege and decadeslong naval blockade of the coastal enclave.

    The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said it launched the sailboat Madleen—named after Gaza’s first and only known fisherwoman—from Catania, Italy at 4:00 pm local time Sunday “in direct defiance of Israel’s illegal and genocidal blockade.”

    “Madleen symbolizes the unyielding spirit of Palestinian resilience and the growing global resistance to Israel’s use of collective punishment and deliberate starvation policies,” FFC said in a statement Sunday. “The ship is carrying urgently needed supplies for the people of Gaza, including baby formula, flour, rice, diapers, women’s sanitary products, water desalination kits, medical supplies, crutches, and children’s prosthetics.”

    The international volunteers aboard Madleen include Thunberg, French Member of European Parliament Rima Hassan, German refugee advocate and FFC steering committee member Yasemin Acar, Brazilian FFC steering committee member Thiago Ávila, Al Jazeera reporter Omar Fayad, French doctor Baptiste Andre, French journalist Yanis M’Hamdi, Turkish engineer Şuayb Ordu, and crew members Mark Van Rennes, Reva Seifert Viard, Pascal Maurieras, and Sergio Toribio.

    “I am aboard Madleen because silence is not neutrality—it is complicity,” said Hassan, who is banned from entering Israel due to her outspoken support for Palestinian rights. “The Palestinian people in Gaza are being starved and slaughtered, and the world watches. This ship is not just carrying aid, it is carrying a demand: End the blockade. End the genocide.”

    https://www.instagram.com/gazafreedomflotilla/

    Thunberg said that “we are seeing a systematic starvation of 2 million people. The world cannot be silent bystanders, Every single one of us has a moral obligation to do everything we can to fight for a free Palestine.”

    The Madleen‘s launch came a month after the Conscience, another FCC aid vessel traveling in international waters off Malta, was attacked twice, presumably by Israeli forces. No one was harmed in what FFC said was a drone strike on the ship. However, the activists were forced to abort their humanitarian mission. Israel has not commented on the incident.

    Madleen also set sail nearly 15 years to the day after Israeli forces raided a Gaza Freedom Flotilla convoy carrying humanitarian aid to the besieged people of Gaza. The attack—which also came in international waters—left nine people including Turkish-American teenager Furkan Doğan dead.

    FFC said Sunday that the “unarmed and nonviolent” mission “poses no threat” and “sails in full accordance with international law. Any attack or interference will be a deliberate, unlawful assault on civilians.”

    Those aboard the Madleen said they were aware of the dangers they faced. Israel has killed numerous Western activists and journalists who document its human rights violations over the years, and just last month Israeli troops opened fire on a group of international diplomats visiting the illegally occupied West Bank two days after three involved countries issued an ultimatum to stop annihilating Gaza.

    “We are doing this because, no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying,” a tearful Thunberg said during a Sunday press conference. “Because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity.”

    “And no matter how dangerous this mission is, it’s nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the live-streamed genocide,” she added.

    Some Israelis and their supporters took to social media to wish harm upon the activists. In the United States, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) alluded to past Israeli attacks on Gaza aid flotillas in a social media post saying, “Hope Greta and her friends can swim!”

    Israel strongly refutes allegations that it is committing genocide in Gaza. South Africa has filed, and dozens of nations support, a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

    The International Criminal Court, also located in the Dutch city, has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, his former defense minister, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, including extermination and starvation as a weapon of war, in Gaza.

    Officials in Gaza say that more than 192,000 Palestinians have been killed or injured since Israel launched its assault and siege following the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023, a figure that includes at least 14,000 people who are missing and presumed dead and buried beneath rubble and hundreds of mostly children who have died from acute malnutrition and lack of medical care.

    Around 2 million Gazans have also been forcibly displaced, often multiple times, amid Israel’s campaign to starve, conquer, indefinitely occupy, ethnically cleanse, and possibly recolonize the coastal strip.

    Each side accuses the other of thwarting cease-fire efforts. On Saturday, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff rejected what he called Hamas’ “totally unacceptable” proposal for a truce in which 10 living and 18 dead Israeli hostages would be exchanged for an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

    Former Israeli peace negotiator Daniel Levy toldDemocracy Now! on Monday that a cease-fire proposal mediated by Witkoff is “a bad deal for the Palestinians that will allow Israel to continue its ethnic cleansing of Gaza” and “walks back the commitment for a permanent cease-fire, Israeli withdrawal, and allowing in of humanitarian aid.”

    Critics accuse Netanyahu of prolonging the war in order to delay his own criminal corruption trial.

    Original article by Brett Wilkins republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

    Experiencing issues with this image not appearing. I suspect because it's so critical of Zionist Keir Starmer's support of and complicity in Israel's genocides.
    Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpA

  • Pro-Palestine activists shut down Maersk headquarters in Copenhagen

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    Original article republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

    800 demonstrators shut down Maersk headquarters (Photo via Palestinian Youth Movement/X)

    Nearly 1,000 activists stage demonstration at the entrance to the headquarters of shipping giant Maersk in protest of weapons transport to Israel

    On February 24, nearly 1,000 activists staged a demonstration to shut down the headquarters of Danish shipping giant Maersk in Copenhagen.

    BREAKING

    Today in Copenhagen 800 people from all over Europe shut down the main Maersk HQ for the day as part of the CRAC Camp under the Mask Off Maersk slogan “Cut Ties from Genocide”.

    Police were outnumbered but quite brutal to those participating in the action. The crowd… pic.twitter.com/4II83Eo8Jt

    — Palestinian Youth Movement (@palyouthmvmt) February 24, 2025

    The pro-Palestine demonstrators were protesting Maersk’s shipment of arms to Israel, under the slogan of the international “Mask off Maersk” campaign, as part of a protest camp organized by the CRAC Collective. Swedish activist Greta Thunberg participated in the demonstration, saying that “we take it on ourselves because we know that these big companies are all about profit.” 

    The Palestinian Youth Movement launched the international “Mask off Maersk” campaign last year, targeting one of the largest shipping companies in the world. Maersk has shipped millions of tons of military cargo from the US to Israel since October 7, playing a key role in the Israeli genocide against the Palestinian people. 

    Pro-Palestine demonstrators have launched actions against Maersk globally, including outside the Port of Elizabeth in New Jersey, a major site of weapons shipments to Israel. The campaign won a major victory in November of last year when Spain blocked two Maersk ships carrying military cargo bound from Israel from docking at the port of Algeciras.

    Demonstrators blocked the entrance to Maersk’s headquarters for over four hours, demanding that the logistics giant stop transporting military shipments to the Zionist state, and end all contracts with the Israeli Ministry of Defense. 

    Thunberg called on Maersk to “terminate all contracts and investment that support the genocide and occupation of Palestine.”

    Original article republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

  • Europe humiliated, but still subservient, after remarks from US officials

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    Original article by Ana Vračar republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

    NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte meets with US Vice President JD Vance. Source: NATO/Flickr

    Statements by US Vice President Vance and Defense Secretary Hegseth on the Ukraine war and transatlantic relations have left European leaders in shock

    “If American democracy can survive ten years of Greta Thunberg’s scolding, you guys can survive a few months of Elon Musk,” US Vice President JD Vance told European leaders at last week’s Munich Security Conference. His remarks came during a draining week for those leaders, as Trump officials announced peace talks with Russian authorities—without European or Ukrainian involvement—while signaling they expect Europe to handle peacekeeping and being paid for their support in minerals from Ukraine.

    Speeches by Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth threw European leaders into disarray, seen as not-so-subtle indications of a cooling in transatlantic relations. These interventions attacked everything from the EU’s efforts to regulate social media platforms to its approach to far-right parties in parliamentary life. In response, French President Emmanuel Macron called for an emergency summit of select regional powers on Monday, February 17 – just a day before US and Russian representatives are expected to meet in Saudi Arabia.

    While Ukrainian officials and some European leaders have insisted they will not accept any deal that excludes Ukraine’s direct involvement, their stance appears to carry little weight.

    Read more: Far-right surge or status quo? Understanding the 2024 European elections

    At the same time, the new US administration has increased pressure on its European allies, demanding a ramping up of their defense budgets and taking on the responsibility of a potential peacekeeping mission in Ukraine. This comes as no surprise: a number of US officials, including Donald Trump himself, have said Europe does not contribute enough to NATO and essentially freeloads off the US. Vance’s speech in Munich only reaffirmed this stance, ultimately reducing high-ranking figures to tears over the apparent breakup between allies.

    While the focus of European reactions to recent US statements has been on Ukraine, many leaders have admitted that more is at stake. “Yes, it is about Ukraine – but it is also about us,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X. Unfortunately, the conclusion she drew going further is upsetting: “We need an urgency mindset. We need a surge in defense. And we need both of them now.”

    Unlike healthcare, education, or social programs—sectors where European governments are consistently told their budgets must remain limited—military spending is expected to face no such barriers. Many European countries have already embraced the shift, with Polish officials, for example, boasting about spending close to 5% of their GDP on defense and warning of looming “wider wars” to convince other states in the region to do the same.

    Read more: Elon Musk and AfD’s Alice Weidel’s align ahead of elections in Germany

    Despite the apparent fracture in US-Europe relations, European leaders have shown no inclination to rethink their dependence on Washington. Instead, most have done exactly what the Trump presidency wants them to do and swiftly pledged to increase military spending. Some have even already expressed willingness to deploy troops for peacekeeping in Ukraine. What remains absent from their reactions is any consideration of a future less dictated by US interests and more aligned with the needs of the people living in Europe.

    Since the beginning of the war three years ago, activists have urged Europe to reject NATO’s warmongering and prioritize peace in Ukraine alongside social justice at home. Instead, the coming surge in military budgets will almost certainly coincide with cuts to public services, further fueling the rise of the far-right—a political force that Trump officials, including Vance and Elon Musk, have (more or less) openly backed during interventions in Europe. From this perspective, unlike the conservative circles who “survived ten years of ’s scolding,” Europe’s liberal elite is unlikely to emerge from its current crisis unscathed. Whether their refusal to acknowledge the failure of their anti-people policies will push the entire region into the hands of parties like Brothers of Italy and Alternative for Germany remains to be seen.

    Original article by Ana Vračar republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

    Elon Musk urges you to be a Fascist like him, says that you can ignore facts and reality then.
    Elon Musk urges you to be a Fascist like him, says that you can ignore facts and reality then.
    Power-mad orange gasbag Donald Trump says Burn, Baby, Burn.
    Power-mad orange gasbag Donald Trump says Burn, Baby, Burn.

    Hi GT ;)

  • Greta Thunberg on COP29’s death sentence, false solutions and empty promises

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    Greta Thunberg was detained by police in The Hague along with other climate protesters. Photograph: Peter Dejong/AP
    Greta Thunberg was detained by police in The Hague along with other climate protesters. Photograph: Peter Dejong/AP

    COP29 is coming to an end.

    Posted on X by Greta Thunberg. I’ve had difficulies embedding X for a week or two.

    As the COP29 climate meeting is reaching its end, it should not come as a surprise that yet another COP is failing. The current draft is a complete disaster. But even if our expectations are close to non-existent, we must never ever find ourselves reacting to these continuous betrayals with anything but rage.

    The people in power are yet again about to agree to a death sentence to the countless people whose lives have been or will be ruined by the climate crisis. The current text is full of false solutions and empty promises. The money from the Global North countries needed to pay back their climate debt is still nowhere to be seen.

    Those in power are worsening the destabilisation and destruction of our life supporting ecosystems. We are on track to experience the hottest year ever recorded, with the global greenhouse gases reaching an all time high just last year.

    The COP processes aren’t just failing us, they are part of a larger system built on injustice and designed to sacrifice current and future generations for the opportunity of a few to keep making unimaginable profits and continue to exploit planet and people.

    With every negotiation, with every speech made by a world leader and with every agreement they sign, it becomes clear that it is up to us as a global collective to take the action we so desperately need and show where the leadership truly lies. They are not going to do it for us, as this COP29 yet again proves.

  • Greta Thunberg Detained at Brussels Climate Protest Against Fossil Fuel Subsidies

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    Original article by Edward Carver republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

    Swedish activist Greta Thunberg is detained during a climate protests against fossil fuel subsidies in Brussels on October 5, 2024. (Photo: John Thys/AFP via Getty Images)

    Renowned activist Greta Thunberg was detained on Saturday at a climate protest in Brussels aimed at ending European Union fossil fuel subsidies.

    The protest included hundreds of campaigners from Extinction Rebellion and other groups; they came together under the name United for Climate Justice (UCJ). One group of them marched in an area near the European Parliament, while another group that included Thunberg blocked a section of the Boulevard du Jardin Botanique.

    “Our politicians have failed us,” Paolo Destilo, a UCJ spokesperson, told Politico. “European leaders’ continued support for the fossil fuel industry raises serious questions about their commitment to effective climate action.”

    Another UCJ spokesperson, Angela Huston Gold, pointed to devastating floods that recently hit Europe and Africa as a warning sign for the planet.

    “Increasingly frequent and extreme natural disasters are likely to claim a billion victims by the end of the century, mainly due to the use of fossil fuels,” Huston Gold said in a statement, citing a 2023 study in Energies, a journal. “To avoid ecological and social collapse, fossil fuel subsidies must end now.”

    The European Commission published a report last year showing that the EU spent 123 billion euros ($135 billion) on fossil fuel subsidies in 2022, an increase on previous years that was caused by policy decisions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. (2022 was the last year included in the report.) The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development listed still higher figures for 2022.

    EU’s Eighth Environment Action Program, which entered into force in May 2022, calls for a phaseout of fossil fuel subsidies, but national governments haven’t taken action, so progress is “uncertain,” according to the European Environment Agency, which is part of the EU.

    Thunberg on Saturday told Politico that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who’s been in office since 2019, was not a green champion.

    UCJ on Tuesday sent an open letter to von der Leyen and other EU institutional leaders calling for a phaseout of fossil fuel subsidies by 2025. “The EU should provide technical and financial assistance to member states facing challenges in meeting phaseout deadlines and offer incentives for achieving milestones ahead of schedule,” it says.

    Staffers at the European Commission were in fact among the demonstrators in Brussels on Saturday, Politico reported.

    “There’s a lot of tools the institutions have now to fight climate change, but since the [European Parliament elections in June] there’s been a lot of backtracking,” one commission staffer told Politico, given anonymity in order to speak freely.

    “It’s now all about competitiveness and the ‘clean industrial deal,’ whatever that means,” the staffer added. “The urgency has been lost—the Parliament has shifted to the right, the commission in many ways has shifted to the right—and discussion of the climate has faded into the background.”

    Thunberg, who’s now 21, came to fame as a 15-year-old activist in Sweden who helped form the global school strikes for climate movement. She’s been arrested numerous times, including at a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Denmark earlier this month.

    Thunberg and other activists who sat with interlocked arms on the Boulevard du Jardin Botanique were arrested and taken to the police station, according to The Brussels Times.

    Original article by Edward Carver republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).