Two German activists involved in the Gaza aid flotilla accused Israel of mistreatment and torture upon their return to Germany on Saturday.
Supporters welcomed activists Nesrin Zeaiter and Uwe Sander at Hannover Airport, Langenhagen, with chants of "free Palestine."
Zeaiter told reporters upon her arrival in Hanover that activists on the flotilla had been tortured.
"I was blindfolded from the very first second," she said, while adding that her hands were tied.
Sander described how his boat, carrying aid supplies for Gaza, was fired upon with rubber bullets by Israeli forces.
Four soldiers boarded the vessel and "kidnapped" both the ship and the seven passengers. He, too, was subsequently kicked and beaten.
According to the organization Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), the two were part of the aid flotilla that was intercepted by the Israeli navy in international waters earlier this week.
The organization Global Sumud Germany reported that activists from the aid flotilla were subjected to abuse, assaults, and torture by Israeli security forces following their arrests.
Zeaiter is said to have been beaten, bitten by dogs, and stabbed with a knife. The German Foreign Ministry also confirmed on Friday that activists from Germany had been injured.
Global Sumud Germany stated that some activists had already returned to Germany, and that others were expected to return in the coming days. The organization is calling for a full investigation into the events.
Germany on Friday demanded "clarification" from Israel on the mistreatment of German activists of the Gaza aid flotilla, calling "the accusations absolutely serious."
