Australian activists detained by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) after their aid flotilla was intercepted en route to Gaza have alleged they were subjected to torture, sexual assault, and beatings. Zack Schofield, a climate organiser from Newcastle, described the treatment as worse than that afforded to animals, stating that violence was meted out inconsistently and at the whim of individual guards.
The flotilla, organised by the Global Sumud campaign, was carrying 428 activists and humanitarian aid when it was stopped by the IDF on Monday. Among those detained were 11 Australians. Schofield said he witnessed an Irish female activist being beaten to the ground after shouting “free Palestine” at Israel’s national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, who toured the detention facility. Ben-Gvir later shared footage of himself verbally abusing the activists.
Juliet Lamont, an Australian film-maker, alleged that soldiers sexually assaulted and beat her, and that at least 40 detainees suffered broken bones. She claimed the violence was a planned campaign to deter future flotillas. The Israeli ambassador to Australia, Hillel Newman, rejected the allegations, stating that detainees were handled with “great sensitivity” and that no one was harmed.
Schofield described being held in overcrowded containers with four people per square metre, forced to sleep on cold, wet floors without blankets. He said guards used stun guns and fired non-lethal “beanbag rounds” at detainees for minor provocations. At Ktzi’ot prison, he alleged his hands were handcuffed behind his back for hours, and detainees were forced into painful stress positions with restricted access to water.
All Australian activists required first aid after their release, with three hospitalised in Turkey. Despite the ordeal, Schofield said the experience had only emboldened the activists, and he would willingly sail to Gaza again. The flotilla’s organisers have called for an independent investigation into the alleged abuses.
