Switzerland deplores ‘unacceptable’ treatment of Gaza flotilla members

Flotilla: Berne deplores the "unacceptable" treatment of activists Keystone-SDA

Switzerland has deplored the "unacceptable treatment of some participants" in the Gaza aid flotilla. Bern called on Israel to respect international law and fundamental rights.

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In a message posted on the X social network, the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) said that the treatment of the activists “appears inconsistent with the assurances received from the Israeli authorities regarding respect for international law and fundamental rights”.

These commitments “must be upheld in practice, including humane detention conditions, procedural guarantees and the right to defence”, added the FDFA.

Questioned earlier by Keystone-ATS, the FDFA said it was aware that several Swiss nationals were among the participants in the flotilla. It stressed, however, that for the time being it had no information from the Israeli authorities regarding the number or identity of the Swiss participants arrested.

Proportionality question

Switzerland has “repeatedly called on the Israeli ambassador to Switzerland and the competent authorities in Israel to respect the fundamental rights of the flotilla participants, including dignified conditions of detention, procedural guarantees and the right to a defence, and to comply with international law and the law of the sea”, the FDFA stated.

“Any intervention against the flotilla must respect the principles of proportionality,” it added.

“It is first and foremost the responsibility of the participants’ lawyers to defend their clients’ rights”, the department reiterated. The FDFA provides “subsidiary” consular assistance in accordance with the Swiss Abroad Act. Consular services are subject to a charge and, in this case, an advance payment is required.

Translated from French by AI/jdp

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