Merve Aydogan
20 May 2026•Update: 20 May 2026
The UN on Wednesday demanded that Israel treat Gaza-bound flotilla activists it detained after attempting to reach the Gaza Strip by sea with "respect and dignity."
When asked about a video shared by Israeli coalition partner and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir showing the detained activists being humiliated after they arrived at the Ashdod Port, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during a news conference that "everyone who has been detained by the Israeli authorities who are members of the flotilla needs to be treated with respect and dignity, like anyone who is detained."
"I think all the people who've been detained should be returned swiftly to their own countries," Dujarric added, emphasizing the need to treat the activists well.
A video shared by Israeli coalition partner and National Security Minister Ben-Gvir showed the detained activists being humiliated after they arrived at the Ashdod Port, while Transportation Minister Miri Regev uploaded another video in which she described the activists as “terror supporters” and “drugged with alcohol.”
Footage aired by Israeli Channel 14 also showed the activists kneeling with their hands cuffed behind their backs and their faces to the floor while the Israeli national anthem played in the background.
According to the organizers of the aid flotilla, Israeli forces attacked a total of 50 vessels carrying 428 people from 44 countries, including 78 Turkish citizens, in international waters on Monday.
The flotilla departed on Thursday from the Turkish district of Marmaris in a new attempt to break the illegal Israeli blockade imposed on Gaza since 2007.
