Romanian interim foreign minister Oana \u021aoiu harshly criticized the way Israeli authorities treated members of the \u201cGaza flotilla\u201d on Wednesday, May 20, stating that the \u201chostility and public humiliation\u201d directed at them are \u201cunacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n
The reaction came after Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir visited approximately 430 \u201cGaza flotilla\u201d activists brought to the port of Ashdod and published images in which they appear kneeling, with their hands tied behind their backs. The activists were brought to the port by armed Israeli commandos, who intercepted some 50 ships bringing humanitarian aid to Gaza.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The minister appeared in the video<\/a> waving an Israeli flag and saying \u201cwelcome to Israel!\u201d to the bound activists.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is how we welcome supporters of terrorism,\u201d the same minister said in a message on the social network X, where he shared the images. He then reaffirmed the position of the Israeli government, according to which the mission intended to transport humanitarian aid to the population of the Gaza Strip, and which attempted to break the maritime blockade imposed by Israel on the Palestinian enclave since 2007, would amount to support for the Islamist group Hamas.<\/p>\n The treatment of the activists was unacceptable, according to the Romanian minister.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe abusive voluntary treatment applied to the flotilla team and the protesters, many of them European citizens, is against the right to human dignity. We demand the immediate and safe release of the flotilla members, in accordance with international standards, together with respect for their right to consular assistance and fundamental human dignity,\u201d Oana \u021aoiu wrote on Wednesday, May 20, on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n Several European states criticized the treatment of the activists. Spain, which has 44 citizens among those detained, summoned Israel\u2019s diplomatic representative in Madrid and issued a protest against the \u201cmonstrous, undignified and inhuman\u201d treatment applied to the flotilla members. The US, UK, France, Italy, and Canada also condemned the treatment of activists. Poland, in turn, banned minister Ben Gvir from its national territory in response to the incident.\u00a0<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s own foreign minister criticized his colleague\u2019s actions. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu also condemned the way the activists were treated, but maintained that supporters of Hamas will not be permitted near Israeli territorial waters.\u00a0<\/p>\n