The mistreatment and humiliation with which dozens of activists from different countries – 44 of them Spanish – illegally detained by agents of the Jewish state in waters near Cyprus upon arrival in Israel has become a scandal both internally and internationally. On one hand, even Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has criticized an operation led by his Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir.
The ultranationalist recorded himself while humiliating the detainees surrounded by agents and shared those images writing: “This is how we receive supporters of terrorism. Welcome to Israel.” Countries such as Spain, Belgium, France, Italy, Turkey, or Canada, all with nationals among the arrested, have also protested the violent reception.
On Wednesday morning, the arrival in Israeli territory of dozens of members of the solidarity flotilla with Gaza who had been illegally detained earlier in the week in international waters when agents of the Jewish state boarded their ships was confirmed.
As soon as they docked at the southern port of Ashdod, the authorities of the Jewish state themselves wanted to send a message to the international community and took care to show images of the group being humiliated and mistreated, according to numerous videos published on social networks and Israeli activists. In some of them, the Minister of National Security, the top chief of police and the penitentiary system, Itamar Ben Gvir, even appears defiant and provocative.
Hours later, Netanyahu defended his right to stop “supporters of Hamas terrorism.” But, at the same time, he added that the treatment given by Ben Gvir “is not in line with the values and norms of the State of Israel.” The prime minister added in a statement that he has ordered to “deport the provocateurs as soon as possible.” One of them is journalist Ignacio Ladrón de Guevara, a collaborator of EL PAÍS, with whom all communications were cut when the ships were boarded.
“Ben Gvir is a criminal and a strategic damage to the State of Israel,” concluded opposition figure Yair Golán from his social networks, a general who leads the union between historic laborism and a party to its left, Meretz. “This coalition knows its end is near,” he added referring to the cocktail of forces on which Netanyahu is supported.
Dozens of ships from the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) and the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) have tried in recent weeks to break the blockade imposed by Israel on the Gaza Strip by sea. In total, according to the organizers, about fifty ships and 430 activists set sail.
The minister Ben Gvir himself released images this Wednesday showing “prison guards and Israeli soldiers beating and humiliating activists,” denounced the Israeli humanitarian organization Adalah in a statement. Earlier, the Minister of Transport, Miri Regev, published a video in which they are labeled as “terrorism sympathizers” and as being “intoxicated with alcohol.” Also, in another video, which the NGO attributes to Moti Kastel, an Israeli journalist from Channel 14, activists can be seen kneeling with their hands handcuffed behind their backs and their faces against the ground, while the Israeli national anthem plays in the background.
Israel’s Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir ATTACKS A FEMALE ACTIVIST and says: “WELCOME TO HELL. The summer camp is over.”
— Suppressed News. (@SuppressedNws1) May 20, 2026
Activists from the GLOBAL SUMOOD FLOTILLA are being ZIP-TIED and ABUSED while being forced to listen to ISRAEL’s national anthem. pic.twitter.com/Aki2qd5nVc
“I have seen a monstrous, inhuman, and unworthy video where members of the Flotilla were unjustly and humiliatingly treated by an Israeli minister and the police. It seems enormously alarming to me and I demand public apologies from Israel,” said the Spanish Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, in Berlin about the images in which activists are seen and Ben Gvir mocks them. The Spanish consul in Ashdod has not been authorized to access the port. Albares made these statements to the press in Berlin, where he met with his German counterpart, Johan Wadephull, reports Miguel González.
The minister announced that Spain has summoned the Israeli Chargé d’Affaires in Madrid, Dana Rerlich, for the second time in 48 hours, to protest and demand the immediate release of the detainees while expressing “all our rejection and disgust for that absolutely abominable and unacceptable treatment.” He also recalled that the far-right Ben Gvir is sanctioned by Spain and predicted that he will soon be sanctioned by the entire EU and added that coordination will be made with other governments with nationals in the Flotilla to give a common response.
The Italian government, which has also summoned the Israeli ambassador, has called the images disseminated by Ben Gvir “unacceptable.” “It is inadmissible that these protesters, among whom are many Italian citizens, are subjected to treatment that violates human dignity,” said Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani in a joint statement. Besides the release, since 29 of their nationals are detained, “Italy also demands an apology,” the text states, reports Lorena Pacho.
Even the Italian opposition has joined the criticism. The secretary of the Democratic Party, Elly Schlein, spoke of “chilling images” and referred to what happened as “crimes against human dignity” by the “criminal government of Netanyahu.”
France has also summoned the Israeli ambassador for the “unacceptable behavior” of Ben Gvir. “I have requested that the Israeli ambassador in France be summoned to express our indignation and demand explanations,” wrote the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, on X. The head of diplomacy assured that “the safety of compatriots is a constant priority.” “Whatever one thinks of this flotilla – and we have indicated on several occasions our disapproval of this initiative – our compatriots participating in it must be treated with respect and released as soon as possible,” reports Daniel Verdú.
The condemnation of the “unacceptable” treatment has also led the Belgian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Maxime Prévot, to summon the Israeli ambassador and demand “dignified treatment and immediate release” of the detainees, according to what he wrote on X.
“The images circulating are deeply disturbing. People detained, tied up, forced to remain face down, and a government minister spreading their humiliation on social media (…) this situation is unacceptable. It violates the most basic principles of human dignity,” condemned Prévot, who also promised that his country will not stop “drawing attention through all diplomatic channels” to the “catastrophic situation in Gaza,” reports Silvia Ayuso.
“This minister (Ben Gvir), a key figure in the genocide perpetrated by Israel in Gaza, has openly demonstrated once again the barbaric and violent mentality of the Netanyahu government,” states the Turkish Foreign Ministry in a statement, reports Andrés Mourenza.
The Canadian government has also announced that it will call the Israeli ambassador for consultations for the same reasons. Others who have joined the protests include the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
“Criminal policy”
“After the illegal interception of the flotilla in international waters and the illegal seizure of more than 400 activists from around the world, Israel is employing a criminal policy of abuse and humiliation against activists seeking to denounce the crimes Israel continues to commit against the Palestinian people,” denounces the Adalah statement.
This NGO is trying to provide legal assistance to the arrested while demanding their unconditional release. “The international community must take urgent measures to protect the flotilla members against this brutal and illegal conduct by Israeli officials.”
Israeli military forces opened fire on Tuesday, used high-pressure water cannons, and carried out risky maneuvers to board the last ten ships still sailing. Nearly a hundred activists were on board. Previously, on Monday, 40 vessels and more than 300 activists were captured.
The Israeli NGO Adalah had already documented “similar patterns of mistreatment” against activists on previous flotilla missions, for which Israel was not held accountable, they add. This and other humanitarian organizations have documented the systematic attacks and torture suffered daily by the thousands of Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli prisons.
The detainees in the Mediterranean arrived on two different Israeli navy ships at the port of Ashdod, according to Chilean diplomatic sources. It was planned on Wednesday morning that they would be transferred to Ketziot prison, near the border with Egypt, the same sources add. It will be then, and not before, when consular visit and assistance procedures can presumably begin.
In the Gaza Strip, where the flotilla ships tried to dock, more than 72,000 Palestinians have died under Israeli fire since the Hamas-led attack on Israeli territory that left about 1,200 dead on October 7, 2023.
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