Some 137 activists detained by Israel for taking part in a flotilla seeking to deliver aid to Gaza arrived in Türkiye yesterday after being deported, with two alleging that Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg was mistreated during her detention.
Israel did not immediately comment on the new allegations, but its foreign ministry earlier described reports that detainees had been mistreated as ‘complete lies’.
The activists who landed at Istanbul Airport included 36 Turkish nationals, as well as citizens from the US, the UAE, Algeria, Morocco, Italy, Kuwait, Libya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Switzerland, Tunisia and Jordan, Turkish foreign ministry sources said.
Two of them, Hazwani Helmi, a Malaysian citizen, and Windfield Beaver, an American citizen, told Reuters at the airport that they had witnessed Thunberg being mistreated, saying she was shoved and forced to wear an Israeli flag.
“It was a disaster. They treated us like animals,” said Helmi, 28, adding that detainees were not provided with clean food or water and that medication and belongings were confiscated.
Beaver, 43, said Thunberg was ‘treated terribly’ and ‘used as propaganda’, describing how she was pushed into a room as Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir arrived.
Israel has faced international condemnation after its military intercepted all of about 40 boats in a flotilla carrying aid to Gaza and detained more than 450 activists.
Its foreign ministry wrote on X that all detained activists were ‘safe and in good health’, adding it was keen to complete the remaining deportations ‘as quickly as possible’.
In a separate X post, it accused some flotilla members of ‘deliberately obstructing’ the deportation process, without providing evidence. Reuters was unable to independently verify the allegation.
Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said 26 Italians were on board the Turkish Airlines flight, with another 15 still held in Israel and set to be expelled over the next few days – along with activists from other nations.
“I have once again given instructions to the Italian Embassy in Tel Aviv to ensure that the remaining compatriots are treated with respect for their rights”, Tajani wrote on X.
First group of Italians from the flotilla – four parliamentarians – arrived in Rome on Friday.
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