FLASH
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Italian M5S MP Dario Carotenuto and journalist Alessandro Mantovani have said they were physically assaulted during the detention of the humanitarian flotilla "Sumud", which was transporting aid to Gaza.
The two Italians were on the ship "Kasr-i Sabadab", part of the flotilla detained by Israeli authorities. After returning to Italy, they stated at Fiumicino airport that they had been beaten and held in handcuffs throughout the transfer.
Mantovani said that during the detention he faced blows to the face and body, while he expressed fear that he might lose his sight after being hit in the eyes. He described a dark environment where, according to him, activists were brought in one by one and faced physical violence.
They showed this as soon as they arrived at Fiumicino airport.
"We are worried, we were hit, but others were brutally beaten. They hit me here and here (he explained, pointing to his slightly swollen face) my leg hurts, they kicked me there, on my back, but I think it's nothing serious. Others were beaten much worse than us," said journalist Mantovani.
As he spoke, the orange bracelet that served as an identification number on board the ship, 164, still dangled in his hand. Carotenuto had the number 147.
"And who forgets it anymore," the journalist said ironically about the violence suffered.
He was tired, it was clear, and several times during the story he almost burst into tears, barely holding back.
"It was a dark container, as soon as you entered there you found three strong men who started beating you. They hit me in the eye, I thought I was going to lose my sight, they kicked me, they even had a taser. They beat us and at the same time they said 'Welcome to Israel'", declared the journalist.
But, he explains, maybe that wasn't the worst moment.
"At one point we were with everyone else, they called us by numbers, told us to take a step forward, raise our hands and turn our backs. It was the longest 20 seconds of my life, I didn't know what was going to happen, I thought about my son, afraid I wouldn't see him again," the MP said, as a nearby suitcase fell to the ground and he was shocked.
"It wasn't a grenade, but it reminds me of something," he adds with a slight smile.
Like everyone else, the first two Italians released were kept handcuffed the entire time, even when they were taken to the airport they had handcuffs on their hands and feet.
"Like criminals," declared Carotenuto, shocked.
"Those we saw there were terrified," he continued, telling of activists with broken arms and ribs, four taken to the hospital, a young German hit with a rifle butt and with circular marks on his back, who was then also shot with a rubber bullet in the leg, elderly people with large bandages, an Indonesian boy soaked to the core who was shaking non-stop.
Some activists have also denounced sexual abuse and harassment.
Medical assistance was not provided by the Israelis, but by doctors and nurses present on the flotilla, including Margaret Connolly, the sister of the Irish president.
"There has been a clear increase in violence. It seems grotesque, because these are military operations against a peaceful initiative. Increasing violence is Israel's strategy," Mantovani explained.
They also expressed great concern for other activists who are still detained.
"The government must do everything to return them home now, enough with formal statements, concrete actions are needed," said Carotenuto.
"Melon must be held accountable and that means sanctions. A stronger stance that would lead Italy to join the 19 countries that are demanding the suspension of the cooperation agreement," added MP Arturo Scotto.
MEP Danilo Della Valle also stressed that the EU has the means to react through sanctions to human rights violations and that these should be applied in this case as well.
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