Pro-Palestinian activists who were deported after their Gaza-bound aid flotilla was intercepted in international waters by Israeli forces have alleged they were subjected to abuse while held in detention.
Canada said it had received information detailing “appalling abuse” of its citizens, while Germany and Spain confirmed that a number of their citizens had injuries.
The flotilla’s organisers alleged there were “at least 15 cases of sexual assaults” while other people who were detained said they were beaten and mistreated.
The BBC has not been able to independently verify the allegations. Israel’s prison service has dismissed them as false, saying all detainees were “held in accordance with the law”.
Warning: This article contains details of alleged abuse some may find distressing
More than 50 boats in the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) set sail from Turkey last week, planning to breach Israel’s maritime blockade of Gaza and deliver food and medical aid.
Israel’s government dismissed the action as a “PR stunt” serving the Palestinian armed group Hamas, and ordered commandos to board the boats west of Cyprus on Monday and Tuesday.
The detained activists were transferred to Israeli vessels and taken to an Israeli prison after arriving at the port of Ashdod.
On Thursday, 422 people from 41 countries were deported by Israel. Many have since arrived home.
Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand said on Friday that she had “received information from my officials which details the appalling abuse of Canadians who were detained in Israel”, without giving further details.
She added: “Canada unequivocally condemns the grave mistreatment of Canadians in Israel. Those responsible for this egregious abuse must be held accountable.”
A spokesperson for Germany’s foreign ministry said its consular officials had met German activists on arrival in Istanbul on Thursday and reported that a number were injured.
Humane treatment of German nationals was an “absolute priority”, they added. “We naturally expect a full explanation, as some of the allegations that have been made are serious.”
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares told reporters that four of the 44 Spanish activists had received medical treatment for injuries.
Organisers of the Global Sumud Flotilla also said on Friday: “At least 15 cases of sexual assaults, including rape. Shot with rubber bullets at close range. Tens of people’s bones broken.”
In a statement, Israel’s prison service said various allegations were “false and entirely without factual basis”.
“All prisoners and detainees are held in accordance with the law, with full regard for their basic rights and under the supervision of professional and trained prison staff,” it said.
“Medical care is provided according to professional medical judgment and in accordance with ministry of health guidelines.”
A number of activists also detailed allegations when they spoke to reporters after being deported.
After returning to Paris on Friday, French activist Meriem Hadjal told journalists she was “subjected to sexual violence and groping”.
She added: “I was hit, slapped, touched, kneed in the ribs, my hair was pulled. I was traumatised for hours.”
Two Italians among the activists deported on Thursday – Alessandro Mantovani, a journalist for the newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano, and Dario Carotenuto, a member of parliament for the Five Star Movement – told reporters about their treatment upon arrival in Rome.
Mantovani said he was beaten up by Israeli forces after being taken to a detention facility made from shipping containers, which he described as a “place of terror”.
At Istanbul airport, British activist Richard Johan Anderson told reporters: “We’ve been beaten, tortured, systematically dehumanised, and… we have just had a little taste of what the Palestinians go through every day.”
Adalah, an Israel-based rights group representing the detainees, earlier said there had been “severe, widespread injuries”, with at least three people taken to hospital for treatment.
The group said its lawyers, who spoke to hundreds of the activists at Ashdod port, had received “a large number of complaints of extreme violence” by Israeli authorities.
Earlier in the week, Israel faced condemnation from more than 20 countries, including the UK, in response to a video shared by Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who oversees the Israeli prison service and police force.
The video showed him taunting dozens of activists while they were shown forced to kneel with their hands tied and foreheads touching the floor. The activists were also seen being roughly handled by Israeli security forces.
It prompted rare criticism for Ben Gvir’s actions from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said they were “not in line with Israel’s values”.
