New testimonies published by Adalah , the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, have revealed fresh allegations of rape and sexual violence against activists detained by Israeli authorities after attempting to break the blockade on Gaza , as lawyers seek to expand the International Criminal Court's Palestine investigation to include alleged abuses against participants in the Global Sumud Flotilla .
The allegations centre on a German journalist detained after Israeli forces intercepted a flotilla bound for Gaza in October 2025. Adalah, the legal centre for protecting the rights of the Arab minority in Israel, has called for a criminal investigation into rape, sexual assault, humiliation and physical violence committed by members of the Israeli Prison Service during her detention.
The new testimony follows previous reporting by The New Arab documenting allegations of sexual violence, abuse and torture against activists detained after Israeli forces intercepted the Sumud Flotilla in May, adding to a broader pattern of mistreatment.
Earlier testimonies obtained by TNA included allegations of assaults aboard so-called "prison boats" and other detention facilities.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Adalah said it had submitted a complaint earlier this month to the government's legal adviser, the legal adviser to the Prison Service, the unit responsible for investigating prison guards and the administration of Givon Prison, demanding a criminal investigation into testimony provided by European activist A.L., a German journalist.
The testimony includes allegations of sexual assault, rape, humiliation and physical violence during her detention at Givon Prison near the city of Ramla.
According to Adalah, the allegations relate to events following Israel's interception in international waters of dozens of vessels carrying more than 500 activists. The flotilla had departed from ports in Europe and Africa in an attempt to break Israel's illegal blockade of Gaza.
In testimony provided to Adalah, A.L. said she was subjected to violence during her transfer from Ashdod port to Ketziot Prison.
"From the port (Ashdod) to Ketziot Prison, I, along with other flotilla participants, was subjected to physical and verbal violence by Israeli security forces and prison service staff. This included prolonged restraint, the use of plastic handcuffs, blindfolding, shouting, threats, including threats of rape, as well as physical assaults," she said.
Adalah said the abuse escalated upon her arrival at Givon Prison.
According to the organisation, female prison guards ordered A.L. to remove her clothes while male guards watched from behind a curtain. When she refused, guards allegedly pulled at her clothing until she was forced to undress.
The activist alleged that while she stood naked, female guards forced her to kneel before one of them inserted her fingers into her vagina and later into her anus.
"The activist also testified that she could hear male guards laughing during the sexual assault and rape," Adalah said.
The organisation called for an immediate criminal investigation, arguing that the allegations constituted serious crimes requiring prosecution.
"The seriousness and illegality of the acts described are clear and leave no room for doubt," Adalah wrote.
"These acts constitute crimes of rape, sexual violence and severe assaults, requiring the immediate opening of a criminal investigation into all those involved and their prosecution." Allegations of a wider pattern Adalah said other women who took part in the same October 2025 flotilla contacted A.L. after she made her testimony public and reported that they too had been subjected to similar assaults, some of which amounted to sexual violence.
"These accounts raise serious concerns that the sexual violence experienced by detainees at the hands of Israeli authorities may constitute a recurring pattern of conduct that has not yet been investigated," the organisation said.
Adalah stressed that the allegations were particularly serious because they allegedly took place inside an official detention facility under state supervision.
"Sexual violence in places of detention cannot be treated as an exceptional or isolated act but rather as a serious institutional violation of human dignity and fundamental rights," it said.
The organisation also pointed to the recent inclusion of Israel on a United Nations list of states and entities implicated in conflict-related sexual violence in connection with allegations concerning the treatment of Palestinian detainees.
The latest testimonies add to a series of allegations made by participants in the Sumud Flotilla who were detained after Israeli forces intercepted vessels attempting to reach Gaza in May.
Testimonies obtained by The New Arab described activists being transferred to what they called "prison boats", floating detention facilities where they alleged they were subjected to physical assaults and sexual violence before being moved elsewhere.
French activist Yasmin Skoula told The New Arab that activists had documented "at least 16 cases of sexual violence" in detention facilities, including allegations of gang rape.
She also described being subjected to a near-naked search by Israeli female soldiers.
In a statement issued on 20 May, the Global Sumud Flotilla said some of the "most horrific testimonies" centred on a torture boat, an Israeli naval vessel allegedly converted into a temporary prison.
The group said at least 12 sexual assaults had been documented on board. France launches war crimes investigation The allegations have also prompted legal action in France.
France's National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor's Office announced on 5 June that it had opened a preliminary investigation into allegations of torture and war crimes linked to the treatment of French participants in the Global Sumud Flotilla by Israeli authorities.
According to AFP , the investigation has been assigned to the Central Office for Combating Crimes Against Humanity and will examine allegations of torture and war crimes.
The move followed a referral by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot after French consular officials collected testimonies concerning violence, beatings, insults and incidents of a sexual nature allegedly committed by Israeli soldiers against French citizens. Push for ICC investigation Alongside national investigations, lawyers and international law experts are pressing the International Criminal Court to expand its ongoing investigation into the occupied Palestinian territories to include alleged violations committed against Sumud Flotilla participants.
The activists were arrested by Israeli forces during a maritime piracy operation on 18 May and were allegedly subjected to various forms of torture.
The arrest of 428 activists, following the seizure of approximately 50 vessels carrying activists from 44 countries in international waters in the Mediterranean, triggered international condemnation.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir published a video showing himself overseeing the mistreatment of flotilla activists.
Several countries, including Spain, Canada, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Belgium and the United Kingdom, summoned Israeli ambassadors or representatives in protest, while France launched its own preliminary war crimes investigation.
Dozens of activists, including Yasmin Skoula and French activist Adrien Bertel, told The New Arab they had been subjected to humiliation, abuse and torture by Israeli soldiers.
The legal team behind the ICC submission has urged prosecutors to investigate alleged Israeli violations against the flotilla vessels and their passengers and to hold those responsible accountable.
Alessandra Annoni, professor of international law at the University of Ferrara and a member of the legal team behind the submission, told Anadolu Agency that the Israeli attack on the flotilla vessels and subsequent measures constituted violations of several rules of international law.
She said some violations could engage state responsibility, while others may entail individual criminal liability for those who ordered, carried out or contributed to them.
According to Annoni, the submission relies on provisions of the Rome Statute and argues that some acts committed against activists could constitute crimes against humanity if proven to have been carried out on a widespread or systematic basis.
These include unlawful detention, severe restrictions on liberty, mistreatment and other serious violations.
The filing also includes allegations of war crimes, including unlawful imprisonment, forcible transfer and the targeting of civilians, though Annoni stressed that determining the validity of those allegations remains the responsibility of ICC investigators.
The legal team argues that the flotilla interceptions should be viewed within the broader context of Israel's war on Gaza and the humanitarian catastrophe facing the enclave's 2.4 million residents.
Annoni said flotilla participants had sought to deliver urgently needed aid to civilians and argued that efforts to prevent such deliveries should be examined as part of the court's wider investigation into the conflict.
Badr Al-Nuaimi, co-legal coordinator of the Global Sumud Flotilla, said the case file includes testimonies alleging mistreatment, physical violence and denial of medical care, among other violations.
He called on the court to independently investigate the allegations and hold those responsible accountable.