Desk Report:
Some participants in the Global Sea Flotilla have alleged that Israel tortured human rights activist Greta Thunberg. The torture was carried out after she was forcibly taken from the Sea Flotilla carrying international aid to Gaza.
According to the Qatar-based media outlet Al Jazeera, 137 human rights activists arrived in Istanbul from Israel on Saturday. Of these, 36 are Turkish citizens. Turkish authorities have confirmed that the others are citizens of various countries, including the United States, Italy, Malaysia, Kuwait, Switzerland, Tunisia, Libya, Jordan.
Turkish journalist and participant in the ‘Gaza Sea Flotilla’ Ersin Celik told local media that he saw with his own eyes the Israeli soldiers torture Greta Thunberg. “She was dragged along the ground, forced to kiss the Israeli flag,” he said.
Malaysian participant Hajwani Helmi and American participant Winfield Bieber gave similar accounts at Istanbul airport. They said Thunberg was pushed and forced to walk holding the Israeli flag. “It was a horrible experience,” Helmi said. “We were treated like animals,” he said. He alleged that he was not given food, clean water, or medicine while in detention.
Bieber said Thunberg was treated very badly and was used as a propaganda tool. Lorenzo Agostino, an Italian journalist on board the ship, also made similar allegations. “Greta Thunberg is a 22-year-old young woman, a brave woman. She was humiliated, she was displayed like a trophy, wrapped in an Israeli flag.”
Other accounts also spoke of serious abuse. Turkish television presenter Ikbal Gurpinar said, “We were treated like dogs. We were kept without food for three days. We were not given water, we were forced to drink toilet water. We were burning in the scorching heat.” He said the experience gave him a new perspective on the plight of the people of Gaza.
Turkish activist Aysin Kantoglu said they saw blood-stained prison walls and messages written by former detainees. “We saw mothers writing their children’s names on the walls,” he said. “We actually experienced a small part of the suffering of the Palestinians firsthand.”
The Israeli human rights group Adalah said detainees complained that they were tied up and made to kneel for hours, were not given medicine and were denied access to lawyers.
But the Israeli Foreign Ministry denied the allegations. Adalah’s spokesman told Reuters, “All of Adalah’s claims are completely false. Of course, all detainees were given access to water, food and toilets. They also had access to lawyers and all legal rights were protected.
International criticism of the country has intensified after Israel attacked a Gaza aid flotilla and detained more than 100 people. The Israeli navy seized about 40 boats. They were carrying more than 450 people. Critics say the attack proves that Israel’s blockade of Gaza is completely illegal. The ongoing war has isolated 2.3 million people in the coastal territory.
The flotilla set off in late August to deliver aid to Gaza. It was the latest international effort to break the blockade and send aid to the Palestinians.
