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(CN) — European leaders came under renewed pressure Thursday to take a tougher stance on Israel after far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was seen on video mocking detained pro-Palestinian activists, many of whom were European nationals.
On Wednesday, Ben-Gvir visited the Israeli port of Ashdod where activists from an intercepted Global Sumud Flotilla were being held. He posted a video showing dozens of activists kneeling, zip-tied and huddled together while he waved an Israeli flag and mocked them.
By Thursday, outrage in Europe mounted as activists returned to Europe with accounts of abuse by Israeli forces.
On Monday, Israel intercepted the latest attempt by the Global Sumud Flotilla to break a naval blockade of Gaza. As with previous interceptions, Israel attacked the flotilla in international waters, detained activists and transferred them to Israel. The flotilla consisted of about 50 vessels, most of them sailboats, and 429 people from 39 countries.
By Thursday, Israel had deported most of the activists following international condemnation of Ben-Gvir’s actions, according to news reports.
Among those detained was Dario Carotenuto, an Italian member of Parliament from the 5-Star Movement. Upon his return to Italy on Thursday, he told reporters he was assaulted by Israeli officials.
“They beat us and said, ‘Welcome to Israel,’” Carotenuto said. “It was all horrible.”
“Three thugs savagely beat us. I was punched in the eye and kicked,” he said with tears in his eyes, according to Italian media. “At a certain point, I felt like I couldn’t see any more.”
Alessandro Mantovani, a journalist with the Italian daily newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano who sailed with the flotilla, said he saw “people with suspected broken arms and ribs.”
In a news briefing Thursday, Bader Alnoaimi, a lawyer for the Global Sumud Flotilla, said the interception involved four large military vessels encircling the flotilla and firing “less-than-lethal” shots at six vessels. He said one vessel sank and the activists were transferred to Ashdod in inhumane conditions inside shipping containers.
He said the group’s lawyers in Israel reported “widespread and systematic physical and sexual violence” was perpetrated against the activists.
He said six people were subjected to sexual violence and 34 sustained injuries requiring hospitalization.
On Thursday, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he had made a formal request to the EU to impose sanctions on Ben-Gvir for his “unacceptable acts.”
Tajani said Israel’s actions against the flotilla were “in violation of the most basic human rights.”
On Wednesday, far-right Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was among a host of world leaders condemning Ben-Gvir.
“It is inadmissible that these demonstrators, including many Italian citizens, are subjected to this treatment that violates human dignity,” Meloni said on social media.
European leaders have begun to take a tougher line on Israel.
Earlier this month, EU foreign ministers agreed to impose sanctions on Israeli settlers responsible for violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
The sanctions — asset freezes and travel bans — target three individuals and four organizations. These include Daniella Weiss, known as the “godmother” of the settler movement, and the organizations Nachala and Regavim, which promote settlements, and Amana and HaShomer Yosh, which finance and assist Israeli outposts.
The sanctions package passed following the recent ouster of far-right Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a staunch Israeli supporter who’d blocked sanctions.
However, the EU has been unable to agree on whether to suspend a trade agreement with Israel. The pact, in force since 2000, grants Israel preferential access to the EU market, which is Israel’s largest trading partner. The deal requires respect for human rights and critics argue Israel has breached the accord with its actions in Gaza and the West Bank.
Spain, Ireland and Slovenia are leading the push to suspend the trade agreement, but Germany and Italy have consistently blocked the measure.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu scolded Ben-Gvir for taunting the detained activists, saying his actions were “not in line with Israel’s values and norms.”
However, Netanyahu said Israel had every right to stop “provocative flotillas of Hamas terrorist supporters.”
Israel conducted two similar interceptions last year against vessels challenging Israel’s blockade of aid into Gaza.
This year, the size of the flotillas has grown. Prior to this latest 50-vessel campaign, 22 vessels set sail across the Mediterranean Sea in April before they were intercepted.
Israel’s interceptions on the high seas are widely regarded as illegal under international law.
Last June, Swedish activist Greta Thunberg was among those detained when she joined a flotilla.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the army to force Thunberg and other activists to watch “the horror videos” of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel and he accused Thunberg of being an “antisemite” and a “Hamas supporter.”
Courthouse News reporter Cain Burdeau is based in the European Union.
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