Activists from several countries detained by the Israeli military aboard the Global Sumud flotilla, which sought to break the illegal siege of Gaza, have alleged torture and mistreatment in Israeli custody.
A fleet of 44 vessels were headed for famine-struck Gaza with humanitarian assistance when the Israeli military violently intercepted the vessels and detained the activists. A total of nearly 450 activists were detained including Greta Thunberg and Nelson Mandela's grandson Mandla Mandela.
The activists, including lawyers, journalists and medical professionals from across the globe were deported after being detained for several days in Israeli prisons.
Malaysian sisters and singers-actors Heliza Helmi and Hazwani Helmi alleged that they were forced to drink toilet water while in Israeli custody.
"Can you imagine we drank from the toilet water? Some people were very, very sick, but they (the Israelis) said: ‘Are they dead? If not, then that’s not my problem,'” Hazwani told Anadolu news agency after landing in Istanbul on Saturday. “They are very, very cruel people,” she charged.
Heliza also alleged that Israel denied the activists food for several days.
"I ate on October 1. Today is my first meal... So for three days, I did not eat – only drank from the toilet," she said.
Italian journalist Lorenzo D’Agostino alleged that the Israeli military used dogs and weapons to intimidate the activists.
Speaking to the Associated Press on his arrival at Turkiye’s Istanbul Airport, D’Agostino said the Israeli soldiers pointed the laser sights of their guns at prisoners "to scare" the activists. He also alleged that his belongings and money had been "stolen by the Israelis."
Similar allegations were raised by Yassine Lafram, the president of the Union of Islamic Communities in Italy, who landed at Milan Malpensa Airport after being deported from Israel.
"They even treated us violently, pointing weapons at us, and this is absolutely unacceptable for us in a country that considers itself democratic,” he told the Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Another activist, Paolo De Montis, said he experienced "constant stress and humiliation" at the hands of the guards, who kept him in a prison van for hours with his hands secured by zip ties.
“You weren’t allowed to look them in the face, always had to keep your head down and when I did look up, a man … came and shook me and slapped me on the back of the head... They forced us to stay on our knees for four hours,” Montis told Associated Press.
Speaking to ANSA news agency at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport on his return on Sunday, Italian activist Cesare Tofani said, “We were treated terribly … From the army, we moved on to the police. There was harassment."
The activists had earlier alleged mistreatment of Thunberg in Israeli custody, stating that she was "dragged by the hair," assaulted, and "forced to kiss the Israeli flag" in a bid to intimidate others. Thunberg, one of the high-profile members of the mission, has been accused by the Israel of having links with Palestinian group Hamas.
Meanwhile, Israel's far-right National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, on Monday said he was "proud" of the harsh treatment of the activists in the Israeli prison.
"I was proud that we treat the ‘flotilla activists’ as supporters of terrorism. Anyone who supports terrorism is a terrorist and deserves the conditions of terrorists,” the minister said in a statement.
The minister, who was filmed taunting and repeatedly calling the activists terrorists after their detention by the Israeli military said he intended to give them a "feel of the Ketziot prison," so they don't come to Israel again.
"If any of them thought they would come here and receive a red carpet and trumpets – they were mistaken... They should get a good feel for the conditions in Ketziot prison and think twice before they approach Israel again," he said.
In a seperate post on X, Ben-Gvir criticised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for deporting the activists, saying that they should have been kept in Israeli prisons "for a few months."
"The Prime Minister's decision to allow the terror supporters from the flotilla to return to their countries - its foundation is a mistake. I think they must be kept here in an Israeli prison for a few months, so they can smell the scent of the terrorists' wing," he said.
"After all, it cannot be that the Prime Minister sends them back to their countries again and again and again - and this sending causes them to return again and again and again," he added.
By contrast, Israel's Foreign Ministry denied the allegations of mistreatment of the activists and claimed that their "legal rights" were fully upheld.
"Interestingly enough, Greta herself and other detainees refused to expedite their deportation and insisted on prolonging their stay in custody. Greta also did not complain to the Israeli authorities about any of these ludicrous and baseless allegations – because they never occurred," the ministry claimed.