Meloni labels Israeli treatment of detained activists as ‘unacceptable’

ROME — Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, called the Israeli treatment of activists onboard the Global Sumud Flotilla “unacceptable” and a “violation of human dignity”, in a statement released on Wednesday.

 A video published by Israeli National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, shows him taunting the detained activists, 29 of whom are Italian. The activists are shown kneeling with their foreheads pressed to the floor and their hands zip-tied behind their backs.

 The video, which Ben-Gvir captioned “welcome to Israel” also shows Israeli security forces pushing activists to the ground with force. The footage has drawn widespread criticism from across the political spectrum in Italy.

 The leader of the Democratic Party, Elly Schlein, labelled the footage as “chilling” in a statement on social media. Schlein called for “sanctions” against “Netanyahu’s criminal government” and the immediate release of the activists. Other countries, including the USA, the U.K. and France have joined Italy in condemning Ben-Gvir’s actions. Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, stated that Ben-Gvir’s actions were “not in line with Israel’s values and norms.”

 On Wednesday, Meloni confirmed that the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, has summoned the Israeli Ambassador to Italy for “formal clarification” of what has occurred.

 The prime minister explained that “Italy is […] demanding an apology for the treatment of these protesters and for the utter disregard shown toward the Italian government’s explicit requests.”

 khg