It is about ten Swedes who were on board the boats that have been taken to the desert prison Ketziot near the Egyptian border, says Anna Fransson, spokesperson for the Swedish Global Movement to Gaza.
We have unfortunately received disturbing reports that very, very long interrogations have been held and that they have been interrogated without legal presence. Some have started a hunger strike to protest against the treatment and against the massacre in Gaza, she says to TT.
Miriam Azem, from the organization Adalah, which provides the activists with legal assistance, says to TT that their staff met eight of the Swedes when they were previously taken to the Israeli port city of Ashdod. Israel has stated that over 400 activists were taken there after the boats were boarded.
They were generally okay considering the circumstances, she says.
She confirms that some interrogations have been held without legal presence, but that lawyers are now present at the prison. However, they are worried about how the activists are being treated, as there have been previous reports of serious misconduct at the prison.
Critical of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs
According to Anna Fransson, the Swedish Global Movement to Gaza is also "very critical" of how the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs has handled the matter.
We have received more information from Spain and Chile than what we have received from the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
On Friday morning, the convoy's own live broadcast showed how marines boarded the last boat. Thus, all approximately 45 boats in the convoy are said to have been boarded.
Israel's operation began on Wednesday evening when the boats began to approach Gaza but were still in international waters.
On Friday, it was announced that four Italian activists from the convoy had been deported and that more would be deported soon, according to AFP, citing information from Israel's Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
Arrested journalists
The organization Reporters Without Borders also condemns Israel for having deprived "more than 20 foreign journalists" of their freedom. Among them are journalists from the Spanish El Pais, Al Jazeera, and the Italian public service company RAI.
In Italy, two major trade unions have simultaneously called a general strike in support of the Gaza convoy. It is being held on Friday and follows large demonstrations in, among other places, Milan and Rome.
The convoy has been traveling towards Gaza for weeks with humanitarian aid to break the blockade.
