Two Turkish activists aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla have accused Israeli forces of torture, severe beatings and electric shocks after their vessel was intercepted in international waters en route to Gaza .
The activists, speaking to The New Arab after their release, alleged that Israeli soldiers subjected detainees to brutal treatment aboard what they described as a "floating prison", including beatings, electric shocks, overcrowded detention containers and humiliation.
Activist Asrin Tok said Israeli forces first approached the vessel while it was sailing in international waters.
"While we were sailing, a Zodiac boat approached us, and they started firing rubber bullets at the boat to force us to stop the engine," Tok told The New Arab .
"After that, we stopped the ship."
"They took us to what they called a prison ship. When we approached it, they transferred us by smaller boats, and that’s when the abuses began," he added.
"The initial intervention took place in international waters, and what they did amounts to piracy."
Tok alleged that detainees were beaten and subjected to electric shocks aboard the ship.
"The beatings on the prison ship were extremely brutal. We were subjected to electric shocks and forced to remain in containers designed for fifteen people, but packed with sixty or seventy people like fish in a tin," he said.
"They pumped dirty water from below. There were a few toilets, but they were filthy tanks, and we stayed there surrounded by the smell of sewage."
He further alleged that Israeli soldiers repeatedly fired plastic bullets at detainees "sometimes just for amusement".
"They would take some of our friends away, beat them, and bring them back," Tok said. "Many suffered different forms of torture, especially those detained later, who were held separately from us."
According to Tok, several detainees suffered broken ribs and extensive bruising.
"They targeted the ribs specifically," he said. "They know how to do it without leaving permanent damage, but they also know how to inflict maximum pain. It was obvious they had special training."
Tok also alleged that detainees were insulted, beaten during transfers and threatened with dogs while being moved between detention facilities.
Asked about a reported visit by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Tok claimed the far-right minister insulted detainees and called them "terrorists".
"Those who answered him back were treated especially harshly and beaten," he said.
Another activist, Mustafa Bozyaka from Antalya, who said this was his second participation in a flotilla mission, described similar events.
"We left Adrasan port on Sunday after taking shelter there because of bad weather," he said. "On Monday morning around eight o’clock we saw large ships on the horizon."
Bozyaka said Israeli forces ordered the vessel to stop before opening fire with rubber bullets.
"One of our friends was hit in the back, so we had to stop," he said. "Our ship was very slow and had a small engine."
He said activists were later transferred to what he also described as a prison ship.
"They put us into old shipping containers," he said. "The floor was wet, half metal and half wood. For two and a half days we looked at the sun without knowing where they were taking us."
Bozyaka alleged that detainees were beaten after arriving at Ashdod port.
"They handcuffed us, bent us over and struck us in the stomachs with their knees," he said. "They forced us to kneel on the ground for hours and pressed on our necks with their knees and boots."
"One of our friends was hit with a plastic bullet that tore his leg open," he added. "The wound was about ten centimetres long, and he may now need surgery."
The activists said they would continue participating in future flotilla efforts despite the alleged abuses.
"Our Palestinian brothers and sisters have endured this for a very long time," Tok said. "God allowed us to experience at least a small part of it so we could better understand their situation."