Tunisian activist Mohamed Ali Mohieddine detailed harsh treatment by Israeli forces after being detained from a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
Speaking at Tunis-Carthage International Airport, Mohieddine described activists aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla as enduring inhumane conditions during their capture.
“They fed us a small piece of bread in the morning and another small piece later, and the water was sewage,” he said.
Mohieddine, captain of the Amsterdam vessel, added he was physically assaulted after insisting the flotilla would continue sailing to Gaza.
Ten Tunisian activists returned home Sunday, among 25 deported from Israel, welcomed by hundreds waving Tunisian and Palestinian flags with chants.
He mocked the Israeli forces, calling them “weak and unfit for maritime operations,” describing panicked and inexperienced soldiers aboard the ship.
Mohieddine recounted alarms aboard the flotilla triggered chaos, with soldiers vomiting and urinating out of fear during the confrontation at sea.
Israeli naval forces seized the flotilla’s vessels late Wednesday, detaining over 470 activists from more than 50 countries attempting humanitarian aid deliveries.
The flotilla aimed to challenge Israel’s nearly 18-year blockade of Gaza, home to almost 2.4 million Palestinians facing severe shortages.
Since October 2023, Israeli bombardments killed more than 67,100 Palestinians in Gaza, mostly women and children, worsening the blockade-driven humanitarian crisis.
The international flotilla incident highlights ongoing tensions over Gaza, as activists continue pressing for humanitarian access and global attention to the blockade.