Israel's national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has drawn a rare rebuke from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and sparked a huge global backlash after releasing videos taunting detained flotilla activists who tried to breach Israel's blockade of Gaza.
Ben-Gvir's Videos and Reactions
Ben-Gvir released footage on Wednesday showing him walking among some of the approximately 430 detainees and telling them they should be jailed for a long time. "Welcome to Israel, we are the landlords," says Ben-Gvir, waving a large Israeli flag. One handcuffed activist shouts "Free Palestine" as Ben-Gvir walks by and is immediately pushed to the ground by security personnel.
Netanyahu said that although Israel has every right to stop "provocative flotillas of Hamas terrorist supporters," the way Ben-Gvir dealt with the activists was "not in line with Israel's values and norms."
In another video, Ben-Gvir says the activists "came here all full of pride like big heroes. Look at them now," while appealing to Netanyahu to grant him permission to imprison them. "I say to Prime Minister Netanyahu, give them to me for a long, long time, give them to us for the terrorist prisons," Ben-Gvir said.
Netanyahu said he has given instructions that the activists be deported "as soon as possible."
Global Backlash
Ben-Gvir also drew the ire of Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, who publicly chastised his fellow minister on X, saying "you knowingly caused harm to our State in this disgraceful display." "No, you are not the face of Israel," Saar wrote.
Ben-Gvir shot back at Saar in the Israeli parliament, accusing him of "bowing to the terrorists" and that any Israeli apology to the activists would send a message of "weakness," "submission," and "surrender."
An Israel-based legal advocacy group, the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel (Adalah), accused Israeli authorities of "employing a criminal policy of abuse and humiliation against activists." Adalah's statement said this followed similar patterns of ill-treatment by Israeli authorities against activists in previous flotilla missions "for which Israel faced zero accountability."
Adalah lawyer Suhad Bishara said a group of 11 lawyers who visited the detainees is aware of at least two activists who were hospitalised after being shot with rubber bullets "for no reason, without any justification." Bishara said the activists will be brought before a judge on Thursday who will decide on when their deportation will begin.
Flotilla spokesperson Rania Batrice said Ben-Gvir posts such videos because the world has not held Israel to account. "If they are doing that to Europeans and Americans and people from South Africa and all over the world, imagine what they are doing to the Palestinian people," Batrice told AP. Batrice urged governments to step up their response. "Strongly worded letters are not what we need right now. We need more action."
International Condemnation
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the video "violates the most basic standards of respect and dignity" in how people should be treated and demanded an explanation from Israeli authorities.
Italy condemned the detained activists' treatment as a violation of human dignity and called Ben-Gvir's videos "unacceptable." It also summoned Israel's ambassador in Rome to protest the treatment of Italian detainees and demand their immediate release. Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said she has directed her officials to summon the Israeli ambassador to Ottawa.
Both Turkey and Greece also condemned Israel's treatment of the activists. The Turkish Foreign Ministry said the behaviour "openly demonstrated to the world the violent and barbaric mindset" of Israel's government. The Greek Foreign Ministry called Ben-Gvir's actions "unacceptable and entirely condemnable" and said it had lodged a formal protest.
Palestinian militant group Hamas called out Ben-Gvir for the "scenes of abuse and humiliation" of the activists, saying they show Israel's "moral decadence and sadism."
Flotilla Interception
Israeli forces on Tuesday boarded the last of the flotilla boats that tried to challenge the blockade — the latest effort to highlight the grim conditions for nearly 2 million Palestinians in Gaza.
Flotilla organisers claimed Israeli soldiers fired on five boats during the interdictions, causing some damage. Israel's Foreign Ministry said no live ammunition was fired and that "nonlethal means" were aimed at the vessels as a warning, but without targeting or injuring protesters.
Israeli forces had begun stopping the flotilla, which had departed last week from Turkey, around 268km from the Gaza coastline, according to the flotilla's website.
