Eleven Australians detained by Israeli forces while attempting to sail humanitarian aid to Gaza have now been deported to Turkey, following a global outrage.
Neve O’Connor, Sam Woripa Watson, Anny Mokotow, Isla Lamont, Juliet Lamont, Surya McEwen, Zack Schofield, Dr Bianca Pullman-Webb, Gemma O’Toole, Violet Coco and Helen O’Sullivan had been held in Israel since their vessels were intercepted at sea on Monday. They were later transferred to Ramon airport in southern Israel ahead of deportation.
Foreign minister Penny Wong described footage of their detention as “shocking and unacceptable”, adding: “We condemn the actions of Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir — who Australia has sanctioned — and the degrading actions of Israeli authorities towards those detained”.
She said Australia had sought urgent clarification and reiterated calls “for the release of the detained Australians and for Israel to ensure no ill treatment of any detainees and to act in line with international obligations”.
Israel’s announcement that “all foreign activists from the PR flotilla have been deported from Israel” came as three chartered planes arranged by Turkey carried more than 400 activists out of southern Israel.
At Istanbul airport, supporters carrying Palestinian flags gathered to welcome the first arrivals, with one activist telling the crowd: “We’ve been tortured, we’ve been beaten, we’ve been arrested in international waters, but we won’t give up. We will return. Palestine will be free from the river to the sea,” per Bangkok Post.
The legal advocacy group Adalah said detainees had been held at Ktzi’ot prison in Israel’s Negev desert before being moved for deportation, and that their lawyers had documented reports of rubber bullets, beatings and humiliating treatment.
Global Sumud flotilla organisers and the medical advocacy collective Doctors Against Genocide have used social media to say the activists’ release is far from a resolution.
“The release of Flotilla volunteers — after being illegally abducted, detained, and tortured, is not justice. It is Israel once again demonstrating the cost of unchecked impunity,” read an Instagram statement shared after activists began arriving home.
“Released volunteers exhibit visible signs of torture and physical abuse, bearing witness to the brutality they endured. Meanwhile, Ben-Gvir has shown absolute disregard for international law and human dignity, doubling down on the criminal treatment of humanitarian workers.
“States must sanction Israel now for its systematic violations of human rights and blatant breaches of international law. While Israeli forces starve Gaza, murder children and families, and deliberately engineer conditions for the spread of communicable disease, rodent, and insect infestations, they treat humanitarian workers with utter criminality. This is state terrorism enabled by global silence. The time for statements has passed. The world must act, or be complicit.”
The outrage surged after Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, posted a video in which dozens of activists are seen kneeling on the ground with their hands bound and their foreheads pressed to the floor.
In the clip, he can be seen waving an Israeli flag and saying: “Welcome to Israel, we are the landlords,” before calling on Benjamin Netanyahu to hand the detainees over “for the terrorists’ prisons”. The UK summoned Israel’s chargé d’affaires and Britain’s Foreign Office said the behaviour “violates the most basic standards of respect and dignity for people”, while Italy’s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, asked the EU’s foreign policy chief to discuss sanctions on Ben-Gvir, describing “unacceptable acts” against activists seized “in international waters” and subjected “to harassment and humiliation”.
Even within Israel, criticism has emerged. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the treatment shown in the video was “not in line with Israel’s values and norms”, while foreign minister Gideon Saar described it as a “disgraceful display”.
Israel has defended its interception of the flotilla, with spokesperson Oren Marmorstein stating: “Israel will not permit any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza.” The Israeli ambassador to Australia, Hillel Newman, told the ABC “no one was harmed” during the operation and that it was conducted with “great sensitivity”, while also calling Ben-Gvir’s conduct “disgraceful”.
The flotilla, which set sail in an attempt to challenge the long-running blockade of Gaza, has once again drawn attention to the humanitarian crisis in the territory, as well as the risks faced by those attempting to reach it.
Lead image: Getty
The post 11 Aussies Among 100s Of Gaza Activists Deported After ‘Shocking & Unacceptable’ Detention appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
