The Flotilla activists detained in Israel will be deported today to Turkey
Lawyers denounce physical and psychological abuses, including beatings and the use of Taser guns
BarcelonaThe 438 activists of the Global Sumud Flotilla detained in Israel, among whom are 44 Spaniards, will be deported today to Turkey. This was announced this Thursday by the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, in an interview on TVE. "The Spanish Consul in Israel has just informed us that they are already being transferred to an airport [...] with the rest of the activists to, as everything indicates, be deported via Turkey" at 3 p.m., he commented. Albares also said that the consuls of the affected countries are observing the situation of the activists in prison, where they have been detained since yesterday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned the Israeli chargé d'affaires, Dana Erlich, to protest what it considers "monstrous, undignified, and inhumane" treatment by the Israeli authorities of the activists of the new flotilla in Gaza. The videos published by the Minister of Internal Security, the far-right Itamar Ben-Gvir, in which he humiliated the detainees and in which they were seen forced to be in stress positions, kneeling with their hands tied with zip ties behind their backs and their heads on the ground, generated condemnation from several affected countries.
On Wednesday night, the lawyers of the Palestinian organization Adalah who were able to visit the detainees reported "physical and psychological abuses", which resulted in "serious and generalized injuries" during the detention, including three activists who had to be hospitalized. They documented "dozens of participants with suspected broken ribs and difficulty breathing", as well as the use of Taser guns and injuries from the use of rubber bullets at the time of the assault and on the prison ship to which they were transferred. They also reported sexual harassment and humiliation and that Israeli soldiers and police had torn the veil from some Muslim participants.
The organization has called a press conference this midday in front of the European Union headquarters in Barcelona.