Greta Thunberg was kidnapped by Israeli forces while aboard a humanitarian aid boat trying to reach Gaza. Donald Trump says she needs anger management classes. If that sounds familiar, it’s because this is the same script—just a new war.
On Monday, Trump was asked whether he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed Thunberg during a 40-minute call earlier that day, after Israeli naval forces intercepted the Madleen, a civilian vessel operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. The boat, carrying medical kits, baby formula, and a dozen pro-Palestinian activists, including members of European Parliament and journalists, was seized in international waters and redirected to Ashdod, Israel.
Thunberg, in a prerecorded video shared by the coalition after the seizure, said:
“If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel.”
Trump’s response?
“She’s a strange person. She’s a young, angry person… anger management. That’s my primary recommendation for her.”
And just like that, a 22-year-old woman trying to deliver baby formula to Gaza becomes the target of a U.S. president’s gendered, belittling media circus—again.
Trump’s Favorite Hobby? Mocking Greta Thunberg
This isn’t Trump’s first attempt to dismiss Thunberg with a sneer and a diagnosis. After her viral 2019 “How dare you” speech at the UN Climate Summit—one that pointedly stared down the then-president—Trump sarcastically tweeted that she was “a very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future.”
Now that she’s older, angrier, and calling a nuclear-armed ally an occupying force, the insults have just gotten louder. But the playbook hasn’t changed.
@newsweek President #DonaldTrump said Israel has “enough problems without kidnapping Greta Thunberg” after the Swedish activist was detained by #Israel while on a “freedom flotilla” to #Gaza. “She’s a strange person,” Trump said Monday. #news #newsweek #politics #gretathunberg ♬ original sound – Newsweek
Trump’s tactic reflects a long-running strategy in right-wing politics: ridicule outspoken young women, especially when they challenge state violence or environmental destruction. Whether it’s Parkland survivors, reproductive justice activists, or Thunberg, their anger is never “real” enough, never “rational” enough, never “grateful” enough.
See also: Who Was on the Gaza Aid Ship With Greta Thunberg? Meet the 12 Volunteers Israel Detained
From Climate to Ceasefire: Greta Thunberg’s Rage Evolves
While her critics try to freeze Thunberg in the role of teenage climate nag, she’s evolved into one of the few high-profile Western figures directly confronting Israeli aggression. She’s marched in ceasefire protests, called out the genocide in Gaza, and joined a dangerous journey to deliver symbolic aid while the U.S. and EU look the other way.
In her own words:
“I’m here because the world cannot be silent bystanders when there is a livestream genocide going on… Everyone who has the opportunity to do something has a moral duty to do so.”
Israel’s response? A tweet that reads like a Bond villain’s PR memo:
“All the passengers of the ‘selfie yacht’ are safe and unharmed. They were provided with sandwiches and water. The show is over.”
Sandwiches and sarcasm. A stunning rebuttal to 54,000 Palestinian deaths and an international law violation.
See also: New Footage Shows Israel Raiding Gaza Aid Boat with Greta Thunberg Aboard
“Kidnapped”? Legally Murky, Morally Clear
Israeli authorities insist their actions were lawful under the naval blockade of Gaza. But legal experts—and the activists aboard—point to the fact that the Madleen was intercepted in international waters. Thunberg and the other passengers were reportedly detained, and some were held in Israeli cells before being repatriated.
Whether or not “kidnapping” is the technically correct term, the optics are brutal: a state military intercepts a civilian vessel, confiscates humanitarian aid, and detains peaceful activists trying to draw attention to mass civilian deaths.
And when asked about it, the U.S. president shrugs and goes back to his favorite punching bag—this time, with Netanyahu on speaker.
See also: Greta Thunberg Sets Sail for Gaza—With Aid, a Boat, and a Warning: “We Can’t Be Silent”
The Show Is Not Over
Trump may think Greta Thunberg’s anger is a “show,” but that’s because rage makes people like him uncomfortable—especially when it’s coming from a young woman with moral clarity and international reach.
The right has always tried to laugh off the voices it can’t silence. But Thunberg’s not going away. And neither is the crisis in Gaza.
If anything, this was never about anger management. It’s about power management. And Greta? She’s still coming for it.