The great Gretas
Palestine's tiny strip coastal strip, Gaza, has become a global cause over the past 17 years thanks, in part, to two women called 'Greta.' Californian activist Greta Berlin is a cofounder of the Free Gaza Movement which in 2008 breached Israel's maritime blockade of Gaza by sailing small boats from Cyprus into the strip's fishermen's harbour.
Born in Michigan and educated in Indiana and Illinois, Berlin, 84, was introduced to the Palestinian cause by her Palestinian-US husband who was a refugee from the town of Safad seized by Israel during its 1948 war of establishment. She became active in Palestinian advocacy after Israel's 1967 occupation of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. She and her husband launched a non-profit charity, Pal Aid International, to send medicine and aid to the Palestinians. In response, she said his tax records were audited by the US Internal Revenue Service, they were questioned by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and warned that their two children could be harmed by a pro-Israel organisation. Her second husband was Jewish and anti-Zionist.
In 1977, while temporarily abstaining from the Palestinian cause, she established a successful firm for coaching engineers and scientists on how to present their work to conferences around the world. In 2003, Berlin joined the International Solidarity Movement (ISM and travelled to the West Bank to taken part in its peaceful protests against the Israeli occupation.
The Free Gaza Movement – established in 2006 – made five successful voyages to Gaza in 2008 but since December that year Israel has blocked all maritime missions to reach the strip. The most violent incident took place in 2010 when Israeli commandos landed by helicopter on the deck of the Istanbul ferry Mavi Marmara and killed nine activists.
The Free Gaza banner was taken up in June by high-profile Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and 11 others on the two-masted sailboat Madleen. On the 9th, the boat was commandeered by Israeli commandoes, Thunberg and her colleagues were arrested, taken to Israel's Ashdod port and expelled to their home countries.
At 22 years of age, two generations younger than Greta Berlin, Thunberg began to shine as a campaigner
In 2018.. Then 15 , she skipped school to demand strong global action against climate change. She vowed to stay away from school until Sweden complied with the terms of the 2016 Paris climate agreement. Students elsewhere around the world followed Thunberg by staging protest boycotts at their schools every Friday. As momentum built, she addressed the 2018 UN Climate Change Conference as well as the 2019 Climate Change Summit in New York where Thunberg accused world leaders of inaction over the growing climate crisis. After graduating from secondary school in 2023, she intensified her involvement in the climate change movement and expanded recruitment by aggressive posting on social media, the chief means of communication used by youngsters of her generation. She also widened her horizons by leading her support to the causes of Palestine, Ukraine, Armenia and Western Sahara.
After Hamas seized control of Gaza from the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority In 2007, Israel waged war on the strip In 2008-2009, 2012, 2014, and 2021. These attacks involved deadly and destructive bombings and shelling from which Gaza and Gazans never recovered. Israel controlled everything which entered the strip and limited building material. On Oct.7, 2023, Hamas fighters struck southern Israel, killing 1,200 and abducing 250, according to Israel. It responded with an offensive, two ceasefires and periods when aid could flow. Israel has failed to win the war and to map a route to end it. As the Palestinian death toll mounted to 55,000, Israel has lost global public opinion. Ireland, Spain, and Norway recognised the state of Palestine in May 2024. Other Western governments could follow suit.
Thunberg described as 'horrific' Hamas' attack on Israel but added that 'the world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected.' In an article published in The Guardian, Thunberg, and other climate activists in her 'Fridays for the Future' movement, made the connection between the climate and Palestinian causes. They said, 'We won't stop speaking out about Gaza's suffering – there is no climate justice without human rights.'
Unlike Berlin, Thunberg has attracted widespread publicity and awards. She was named in Time magazine's 100 most influential people and Forbes' list of the world's 100 most powerful women in 2019 and nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Between 2008 and 2025 – and particularly over the past two years – a great deal has changed on the Palestine advocacy front. While attempting to suppress negative publicity over its policies in the occupied West Bank and dominated Gaza, Israel has not escaped castigation and condemnation. Among its sharpest critics has been B'Tselem, the Israeli rights organisation which labelled Israel's system of West Bank governance as 'apartheid,' which is illegal under international law. This label has been picked up by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch which had been wary of using the term until B'Tselem applied it. In July 2024, the International Court of Justice found Israel responsible for apartheid, war crimes, and crimes against humanity including plausible 'genocide.'
Israel's Gaza's war, siege and blockade of Gaza led the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and ex-Defence Minister Yoav Gallant as well as Hamas leaders who were assassinated by Israel. Israel has not escaped accountability in global public opinion and among some Western allied governments although the US has remained loyal. It is much safer these days to be critical of Israel than when Greta Berlin and her sailors began their voyages to Gaza.
Photos: AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Middle East Eye
an hour ago
- Middle East Eye
Ali Shamkhani: Iranian negotiator thought killed by Israel is alive, says state media
A senior Iranian negotiator who was suspected killed in an Israeli air strike in Tehran last week is alive, according to state media. Ali Shamkhani, an advisor to Iran's supreme leader and representative at talks with the United States, was thought among the senior Iranian officials reportedly killed by Israeli attacks in the early hours of 13 June. However, on Friday, state media in Iran carried a letter from Shamkhani addressed to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in which he stated he was, in fact, alive. "I am alive and ready to sacrifice myself," read the letter, which was reported by several Iranian outlets, including state-owned broadcaster IRIB and Tasnim, which is linked to the Revolutionary Guard. "Victory is near. The name of Iran will be immortalised in the highest history as usual," the purported letter said. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters A range of Israeli and Iranian outlets initially reported that Shamkhani had been killed in a blast that struck his home. Samira - not her real name - a Tehran resident who lives directly opposite Shamkhani's residence, told Middle East Eye earlier this week it was a "miracle" she had survived the blast herself. "We got up from the ground in fear and realised the apartment across from ours had been bombed," she said. "Both my husband and I were thrown from our bed. The explosions didn't stop. We had no idea what was happening." Khamenei assassination could draw Hezbollah into Israel-Iran hostilities, say sources Read More » Several Iranian media outlets, including IRNA, Tasnim and Fars, said on Friday that Shamkhani had been "severely injured and taken to hospital" after the blast and is now "in stable condition". No new photos have been released of the advisor, however. Shamkhani had been leading Iran's talks with the US over limitations to the country's nuclear programme when Israel launched a surprise assault that has killed hundreds. A range of senior Iranian military commanders and nuclear scientists have been slain over the past week, while Israel has struck much of the country's nuclear infrastructure. On Friday, thousands of people demonstrated against Israel in Tehran, chanting slogans in support of their leaders, according to images broadcast by state television. "This is the Friday of solidarity and resistance of the Iranian nation throughout the country," said a news anchor. Demonstrators reportedly held portraits of commanders killed since the start of the war with Israel, while others waved Iranian and Hezbollah flags. According to the state broadcaster, other demonstrations took place in cities across the country, including Tabriz in northwest Iran, and Shiraz in the south.
The National
2 hours ago
- The National
Macron seeks renewed Iran talks on zero enrichment, missiles and proxies
Iranian foreign minister due to meet European envoys in Geneva on Friday Tehran wants guarantees that Israel will stop war 'forever', President Pezeshkian says Iran says it has received 'several messages' from the US Nuclear research site targeted in latest Israeli attacks In Gaza, at least 43 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks One person killed in Israeli airstrike on south Lebanon
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Father and son killed in Gaza strike as death toll rises to 48
An Israeli air raid targeting a residential building in the Al-Tuffah neighbourhood of Gaza City killed a Palestinian man and his son on Friday, according to medical officials. The victims were identified as Abdul Majeed Al-Sharafi and his son, Basem, WAFA news agency reported. Their deaths bring the number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip since dawn to at least 48, as Israeli bombardment continues across the besieged territory.
