Gaza Flotilla Activists Allege Beatings, Sleep Deprivation, Humiliation In Israeli Detention

Israeli forces intercepted a humanitarian flotilla attempting to reach Gaza last week, detaining more than 400 activists, including Greta Thunberg, who now allege abuse, from physical beatings to verbal insults and forced humiliation. The Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) was stopped as it sought to challenge Israel's maritime blockade of Gaza. Most detainees were held at Ketziot, a high-security prison in the Negev desert, typically used for Palestinians accused of involvement in terrorist activities.

Turkish activist Ersin Celik told Anadolu news agency, “They (Israeli forces) severely tortured Greta [Thunberg] before our eyes,” Celik said. “They persecuted her -- Greta is just a little child. They made her crawl and made her kiss the Israeli flag. They did exactly what the Nazis did once,” he said.

A Swedish foreign ministry email confirmed that Thunberg had been forced “to hold flags” and “detained in a cell infested with bedbugs, with too little food and water.”

Activists described sleep and medication deprivation, beatings, rifles pointed at their heads, dogs set on them, insults, and being forced to watch footage of Hamas attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023, as per The Guardian.

“I was beaten from the moment we entered the port until the very end,” Italian journalist Saverio Tommasi told The Guardian. “Blows to my back, blows to my head, and they [the Israeli soldiers] laughed, laughed at all of it. Anyone who failed to keep their eyes down was punished with a hit to the head.”

Spanish activist Rafael Borrego added, “At any time that any of us called a police officer, we risked that seven or more fully armed people entered our cell, pointing us with weapons at our heads, with dogs ready to attack us, and being dragged to the floor. This happened on a daily basis.”

Former Barcelona mayor Ada Colau described the prison as a “prison of a fascist state,” noting that her cell yard displayed a large photograph of a bombed Gaza with the caption: “Welcome to the new Gaza.” “When we asked for a doctor, we were told that that was for humans,” she said.

Israeli forces reportedly injured an activist's shoulder and ribs during the interception and later subjected him to verbal abuse, denied him clean water, and kept him awake while in detention.

Italian journalist Lorenzo D'Agostino said detainees who urgently needed medication were ignored.

D'Agostino and others said Thunberg was singled out for harsher treatment. “I saw with my own eyes that they draped an Israeli flag over her while soldiers took selfies with her. Greta is a strong and courageous woman, but during detention she looked deeply shaken,” he said.

Israel has denied all allegations, calling them “complete lies”. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said he was “proud” of staff conduct at Ketziot, adding, “They should get a good feel for the conditions in Ketziot prison and think twice before they approach Israel again,” as per PBS.

The deportations raised the total to 341 from 479 detainees, including nationals from Turkey, the US, UAE, and several other countries. A new Turkish flotilla of 250 doctors, nurses, and journalists heads to Gaza on a converted hospital ferry.