ISTANBUL 

French activist Yasin Benjelloyn, who was aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla, has described the harsh and degrading treatment by Israel during detention. He was among those forcibly taken to Israel after Israeli forces held them in international waters.

“The way they (Israel ) treated us is they prevented us from having medicine for those who needed medicine. They only gave us water after 32 hours. Drinkable water," Benjelloyn told Anadolu after arriving in Istanbul on a special flight Saturday.

"We had barely any food. We were woken up at 3 in the morning with dogs and snipers walking into our rooms, waking us up every two hours to prevent us from sleeping," he said. “They do this to us -- innocent civilians -- and it could only let us imagine what they do to the Palestinians."

Benjelloyn expressed gratitude to Türkiye for assisting in their safe return. “We have to thank Turkey for what they did today and for bringing us home safely.”

The plane carrying 137 activists from the humanitarian flotilla landed at Istanbul Airport on Saturday afternoon. The flight, which departed from the Ramon Airport in Eilat, Israel, arrived at 3.50 pm local time (1250 GMT).