Activists say Israeli troops have boarded a yacht trying to bring humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, in defiance of an Israeli naval blockade.

“Connection has been lost” on the Madleen, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) campaign group said on the Telegram app.

It posted a photo showing people in life jackets sitting with their hands up.

Appearing to confirm that the ship had been boarded, Israel’s foreign ministry said the yacht was “safely making its way to the shores of Israel” and its passengers were “expected to return to their home countries”.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg is among those aboard the vessel, which was reported to be off the Egyptain coast.

Israel says its blockade is necessary to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas militants in Gaza.

After reporting that the yacht had been boarded, the FFC posted short, pre-recorded videos of some of the activists, including Thunberg.

In the footage, activists say “if you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped” by the Israeli military or forces supporting Israel.

The FFC earlier said the vessel, which left Italy’s island of Sicily on Friday, was carrying humanitarian aid and had been “prepared for the possibility of an Israeli attack”.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz had warned that the yacht should turn back and that Israel would act against any attempt to breach the blockade.

He wrote in a post on X on Sunday: “I have instructed the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] to act to prevent the ‘Madeleine’ [sic] hate flotilla from reaching the shores of Gaza – and to take whatever measures are necessary to that end.”

Katz says the purpose of Israel’s blockade, which has been in place since 2007, is to “prevent the transfer of weapons to Hamas” and is essential to Israel’s security as it seeks to destroy Hamas.

The FFC has argued that the sea blockade is illegal, characterising Katz’s statement as an example of Israel threatening the unlawful use of force against civilians and “attempting to justify that violence with smears”.

“We will not be intimidated. The world is watching,” FFC press officer Hay Sha Wiya said.

“The Madleen is a civilian vessel, unarmed and sailing in international waters, carrying humanitarian aid and human rights defenders from across the globe… Israel has no right to obstruct our effort to reach Gaza.”

The Madleen is carrying a symbolic quantity of aid, including rice and baby formula, the group said.

Citizens of Brazil, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Turkey are onboard.

In 2010, Israeli commandos killed 10 people when they boarded Turkish ship Mavi Marmara that was leading an aid flotilla towards Gaza.

Israel recently began to allow limited aid into Gaza after a three-month land blockade, prioritising distribution through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which is backed by Israel and the US but widely condemned by humanitarian groups.

The UN’s human rights chief, Volker Türk, said last week Palestinians were being presented with the “grimmest of choices: die from starvation or risk being killed while trying to access the meagre food that is being made available”.

But in a post on X early on Monday, the Israeli foreign ministry said: “While Greta and others attempted to stage a media provocation whose sole purpose was to gain publicity – and which included less than a single truckload of aid – more than 1,200 aid trucks have entered Gaza from Israel within the past two weeks, and in addition, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has distributed close to 11 million meals directly to civilians in Gaza.

“There are ways to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip – they do not involve Instagram selfies.”

It is almost 20 months since Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to the unprecedented Hamas-led cross-border attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 54,880 people have been killed in Gaza since, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.

In London, the site for floral tributes is at Green Park next to Buckingham Palace, where officials who manage the so-called Royal Parks have issued guidance on what to do.

For instance, officials have asked the public to remove plastic wrapping from any flowers before leaving them. This will make it easier for the flowers to eventually be turned into compost at least a week after the funeral takes place.

They’ve also said, “We would prefer visitors not to bring non-floral objects/artefacts such as teddy bears or balloons.”

The advice was also shared with the BBC, as presenter Sally Nugent told viewers, “They are suggesting that there are enough Paddingtons and marmalade sandwiches in the parks at the moment so please feel free to bring flowers but maybe don’t bring any more Paddingtons or marmalade sandwiches for now.”

Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports one dead and two others wounded in the Israeli attack on a vehicle.

The Israeli army has again bombed Syria, claiming it killed a Hamas member during an air strike in the south of the country, in the latest in its series of attacks on Syria in the wake of former President Bashar al-Assad’s ouster last December.

In a statement on Telegram on Sunday morning, the Israeli army said it had struck the alleged Hamas member in the Mazraat Beit Jin area.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that one person was killed and two others were wounded in the Israeli attack targeting a vehicle in the town near the United Nations-patrolled buffer zone.

Hamas has not yet commented on the death of the alleged member.

The observatory says Israel has carried out 61 attacks – 51 by air and 10 by ground – in Syria so far this year.

Two rockets launched from Syria targeted Israel earlier this week, a first since the fall of al-Assad.

Two groups claimed responsibility for the attack.

The first group, named the “Martyr Mohammed Deif Brigades”, is a little-known group named after the Hamas military commander who was killed last year. A second little-known group, the “Islamic Resistance Front in Syria”, called for action against Israel from southern Syria a few months ago.

Israel struck southern Syria shortly afterwards, with Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz saying that he was holding Syria “directly responsible”.

Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani condemned Israel’s attacks and called them “coordinated provocations aimed at undermining Syria’s progress and stability”.

“These actions create an opening for outlawed groups to exploit the resulting chaos,” he said, adding, “Syria has made its intentions clear: we are not seeking war, but rather reconstruction”.

Syria and Israel had recently engaged in indirect talks to ease tensions, a significant development in relations between states that have been on opposite sides of conflicts in the Middle East for decades.

But Israel has relentlessly waged a campaign of aerial bombardment that has destroyed much of Syria’s military infrastructure. It has occupied the Syrian Golan Heights since the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and taken more territory in the aftermath of al-Assad’s removal, citing lingering concerns over the country’s new government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who it dismisses as a “jihadist.”

Syria’s new government has taken several major steps towards international acceptance after the United States and European Union lifted sanctions on the country last month, giving a nation devastated by nearly 14 years of civil war a lifeline to recovery.

A strong, 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck in Colombia on Sunday, according to the United States Geological Survey.

The temblor happened at 8:08 a.m. Colombia time about 72 miles east of Bogota, Colombia, data from the agency shows.

As seismologists review available data, they may revise the earthquake’s reported magnitude. Additional information collected about the earthquake may also prompt U.S.G.S. scientists to update the shake-severity map.

Aftershocks can occur days, weeks or even years after the first earthquake. These events can be of equal or larger magnitude to the initial earthquake, and they can continue to affect already damaged locations.