PARIS, May 29 (Reuters) – France has asked for the public prosecutor to investigate the treatment of French nationals who were part of a recent activist flotilla heading for Gaza, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Friday.
“Based on a report I requested from our Consul General in Turkey, who informed me of sexual violence, exposure to the cold, beatings, and repeated humiliation of French nationals, all of these acts are likely to constitute criminal offenses (and) I decided yesterday to refer the matter to the public prosecutor,” Barrot told France Inter radio.
Organisers of a flotilla that was detained last week during an attempt to bring aid to Gaza said activists were subjected to abuse, with several hospitalized with injuries and at least 15 reporting sexual assaults including rape. The activists have since been released.
The lawyers for the French flotilla activists said that they would file a separate complaint over the violence their clients were subjected to, including humiliation, rape and acts of torture.
They declined an invitation from Barrot’s cabinet to discuss the matter, saying in a statement that “the buzz from the minister’s declarations will not make us forget that the French government has supported the state of Israel since the beginning of the genocide.”
(Reporting by John Irish, Dominique Vidalon and Layli Foroudi; Editing by Makini Brice)
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