JAKARTA - Nine members of the Gaza aid flotilla, the Global Sumud Flotilla, arrived in Switzerland on Sunday after being deported by Israel. Some of them described inhumane conditions while detained there.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry previously called reports of detainee abuse a "big lie."
Nine Swiss citizens, including former Geneva Mayor Remy Pagani, were aboard the flotilla, part of a flotilla of dozens of ships attempting to deliver aid to the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip.
They were detained last Wednesday by Israeli forces who intercepted the flotilla at sea and taken to Israel's Ktzi'ot prison, according to the Waves of Freedom flotilla group.
Nine members of the group returned to Geneva on Sunday afternoon.
"The participants condemned the inhumane conditions of detention and the humiliating and degrading treatment they experienced during their arrest and detention," the group said in a statement, as reported by Reuters on Monday, October 6.
Meanwhile, Israel said on Sunday that the activists' legal rights were "fully upheld," no physical violence was used, and all detainees were given access to water, food, and toilets.
Detainees described sleep deprivation, lack of water and food, and some were beaten, kicked, and locked in cages.
Waves of Freedom said it was "deeply concerned" about the ten Swiss citizens still being held by Israel.
On Sunday, the Swiss Embassy in Tel Aviv visited ten Swiss citizens imprisoned to provide consular protection.
"All of them are in relatively good health, considering the circumstances," it said.
Waves of Freedom said some of them had been on hunger strike and appeared weak. Hundreds of other activists, including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg, were also detained in the latest attempt by activists to challenge Israel's naval blockade of Gaza, where Israel has been waging a war since the Hamas offensive in October 2023.
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