Greta Thunberg has accused Israeli authorities of mistreatment after being detained during a humanitarian flotilla attempting to reach Gaza.
Citing an email sent from the Swedish foreign ministry to people close to Thunberg, The Guardian reports that the 22-year-old activist told a Swedish official she was held in a cell infested with bedbugs, given little food and water, and suffered from dehydration and rashes.
“Another detainee reportedly told another embassy that they had seen her [Thunberg] being forced to hold flags while pictures were taken. She wondered whether images of her had been distributed,” the Swedish ministry’s official added in the email.
The allegation was corroborated by at least two other flotilla members who had been detained by Israeli forces but released on Saturday (Oct. 4)
Turkish activist Ersin Çelik and fellow Sumud flotilla participant told Anadolu news agency that Israeli forces “dragged little Greta by her hair before our eyes, beat her and forced her to kiss the Israeli flag,” adding, "They did everything imaginable to her, as a warning to others.”
Journalist Lorenzo D’Agostino claimed Thunberg was “wrapped in the Israeli flag and paraded like a trophy.”
Thunberg was one of 437 people aboard the Global Sumud flotilla, which included parliamentarians, lawyers, and activists. The flotilla was intercepted between Thursday and Friday by Israeli forces, and all members were detained. Some of those individuals were sent to Ketziot prison, a high-security facility in the Negev desert.
Activists and legal teams alleged systemic mistreatment of detainees. According to the NGO Adalah, detainees were “denied water, sanitation, medication and immediate access to their legal representatives,” calling it a breach of due process.
Thunberg reportedly only received “a packet of crisps,” while others were left “for hours without food or water,” per her legal team.
Thunberg, who had been previously detained by Israel authorities in a similar incident earlier this year, was reportedly asked to sign a document during her latest detention. According to the Swedish official, Thunberg “expressed uncertainty about what the document meant and did not want to sign anything she did not understand.” She supposedly had access to legal counsel.
French doctor Baptiste André, who participated in the flotilla in June, told reporters he saw Israeli border agents mock passengers and deprive them, including Thunberg, of sleep.
The Israeli embassy called the allegations “complete lies,” saying, “All detainees from the Hamas-Sumud provocation were given access to water, food and toilets; they were not denied access to legal counsel, and all their legal rights, including access to medical care, were fully upheld.
“Israel is and will remain a state governed by the rule of law, committed to upholding the rights and dignity of all individuals in accordance with international standards,” it added.