{"id":316610,"date":"2026-05-25T12:01:20","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T11:01:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=316610"},"modified":"2026-05-23T18:38:28","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T17:38:28","slug":"gaza-flotilla-activists-accuse-israel-of-sexual-assault-violence-and-rape-while-they-were-in-detention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2026\/05\/gaza-flotilla-activists-accuse-israel-of-sexual-assault-violence-and-rape-while-they-were-in-detention\/","title":{"rendered":"Gaza Flotilla Activists Accuse Israel of \u2018Sexual Assault, Violence and Rape\u2019 while They Were in Detention"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"<\/a>

French national Adrien Jouan shows injuries to his back.
(Reuters)<\/p><\/div>\n

Activists who were on board the Global Sumud flotilla have accused the Israeli military of carrying out beatings and sexual assault [photos] \u2013 Israel denied the allegations.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

22 May 2026\u00a0<\/em>–\u00a0Activists who were detained when a humanitarian aid flotilla to Gaza<\/a> was seized by Israel have accused the Israeli military<\/a> of carrying out sexual assault, violence and rape<\/a> against them while they were in detention.<\/p>\n

Israeli forces arrested 430 people on board 50 ships in international waters on Tuesday, as the group of volunteers attempted to deliver aid supplies to the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s handling of the flotilla attracted international criticism after far-right security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir<\/a>mocked detainees bound with zip-ties<\/a> in a video posted to his X account.<\/p>\n

Now that the activists have been released, they have made allegations of serious abuse during their capture, which Israel has strongly denied.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The video of an Israeli minister mocking flotilla detainees has sparked worldwide condemnation.\u00a0 (X\/Itamar Ben-Gvir)<\/p><\/div>\n

Catriona Graham, a 37-year-old Irish activist and one of the main coordinators of the mission, told The Independent <\/em>the group had received multiple reports of abuse.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have had at least 15 reports so far of sexual assaults, and more than 30 reports of broken bones,\u201d she said, although the group are awaiting final numbers as activists are still separated from each other. Ms Graham said at least one person was still having surgery to treat his injuries.<\/p>\n

Luca Poggi, an Italian economist who was among those detained on board the flotilla, said on his arrival in Rome: \u201cWe were stripped, thrown to the ground, kicked. Many of us were tasered, some were sexually assaulted, and some were denied access to a lawyer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sabrina Charik, who helped organise the return of 37 French citizens from the flotilla, said five French participants had been hospitalised in Turkey, some with broken ribs or fractured vertebrae. Some had made detailed accusations of sexual violence, including rape, she said.<\/p>\n

In an Instagram post published by an activist group, French national Adrien Jouen showed bruises across his back and on his forearms.<\/p>\n

In response, Israel denied claims of mistreatment. \u201cThe allegations raised are false and entirely without factual basis,\u201d an Israeli prison service spokesperson said in a statement. \u201cAll 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.<\/p>\n

\u201cMedical care is provided according to professional medical judgement and in accordance with Ministry of Health guidelines.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A number of activists say they suffered injuries and some as said to have required medical treatment (Getty)<\/p><\/div>\n

Hillel Newman, Israel\u2019s ambassador to Australia, also denied that flotilla participants had been treated badly, and rejected claims of sexual abuse and violence carried out against eleven Australians.<\/p>\n

\u201cOut of the 400-plus people that were on the flotilla, no one was harmed,\u201d he told the ABC on Thursday, claiming that the activists had been handled with \u201cgreat sensitivity\u201d.<\/p>\n

The new allegations of abuse will add to pressure on Israeli authorities to explain the treatment of the detainees, whose plight was initially highlighted by the Ben-Gvir footage.<\/p>\n

Ms Graham was seen at the start of the video shouting \u201cFree Palestine\u201d as the minister taunted prisoners at a processing centre earlier this week.<\/p>\n

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Israel has denied that the activists were mistreated. (AFP\/Getty)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThey had a line of commandos between about 10 of us and them, and a ring … of military around him,\u201d she told The Independent<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was just no way to let him walk by and have us be in silence while he\u2019s gloating. I know that there is a video of me shouting \u2018Free Palestine\u2019 at Ben-Gvir, and there have been responses to that and condemnation of Ben-Gvir as an individual<\/a>, even within the Israeli government.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think it\u2019s really important that they do not get to scapegoat him. He has been doing far, far worse to Palestinian prisoners for years.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the interaction, Ms Graham said she was dragged along the ground into isolation, and forced to lie on her face while she was zip-tied as eight men stood above her discussing what should be done to her. She said she has since been treated for bruising and swelling.<\/p>\n

Ms Graham said she had noticed a marked escalation in violence since her last flotilla trip in 2025, and claimed that once they had been intercepted, the group was told: \u201cYou have words, we have weapons.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A group of Italian activists arrive at Fiumicino airport after their release. (Reuters)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThey were clear in their threats of violence with us and threats to use weapons,\u201d she said. \u201cWe were very, very concerned that people were going to be killed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ms Graham said she saw a fellow activist shot with a rubber bullet, another punched, and others being dragged and shoved repeatedly.<\/p>\n

The group is now planning a legal case to sue Israel for its alleged treatment of the activists, and have accused the country of perpetrating war crimes and violations of international law in its treatment of both themselves and the Palestinians.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat they are doing to the Palestinians is far worse,\u201d said Ms Graham. \u201cThey\u2019re left in detention and in isolation, sometimes in dark underground cells, and have no support or warm physical contact, all while knowing that the lives of their family and friends have been threatened.\u201d<\/p>\n

The on-camera treatment of the detainees has been condemned by the international community, including British home secretary Yvette Cooper, and even by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a> himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way that Minister Ben-Gvir dealt with the flotilla activists is not in line with Israel\u2019s values and norms,\u201d Mr Netanyahu said earlier this week, after the video clip was met with widespread backlash. \u201cI have instructed the relevant authorities to deport the provocateurs as soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Go to Original – independent.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

22 May 2026\u00a0–\u00a0Activists who were on board the Global Sumud flotilla have accused the Israeli military of carrying out beatings and sexual assault [photos] \u2013 Israel denied the allegations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":316613,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[229,1473,87,865,3566,2395,88,1243,427,2114,2111,880,1025],"class_list":["post-316610","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-activism","tag-activism","tag-blockade","tag-gaza","tag-genocide","tag-global-sumud-flotilla","tag-international-criminal-court-icc","tag-israel","tag-nonviolent-action","tag-palestine","tag-pariah-state","tag-piracy","tag-state-terrorism","tag-west-bank"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316610","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=316610"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316610\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":316618,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316610\/revisions\/316618"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/316613"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=316610"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=316610"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=316610"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}