Korean activists allege physical and sexual abuse by Israeli captors

Two Korean activists detailed alleged abuse by Israeli forces after their humanitarian aid flotilla was intercepted en route to Gaza. Kim A-hyun, also known as Haecho, described being dragged into a dark shipping container, subjected to blows to the face, and experiencing bleeding from her nose.

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After fully armed Israeli soldiers searched my body, I was dragged alone to a dark shipping container. The lights switched on, and whenever I looked at the light, they hit me in the face. Whenever my head was bowed, I was forced to look back up at the light.

"After fully armed Israeli soldiers searched my body, I was dragged alone to a dark shipping container. The lights switched on, and whenever I looked at the light, they hit me in the face. Whenever my head was bowed, I was forced to look back up at the light," Kim A-hyun recounted at a press conference in Seoul.

Kim Dong-hyeon reported similar mistreatment, including tightly bound wrists that caused bleeding and numbness, and continuous pummeling and kicking. "My entire body, including my head and my legs, was in excruciating pain," he stated, adding that he feared for his life due to hyperventilation.

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My hands were tied, my body was searched, and I was continuously pummeled and kicked as I was being taken away. My wrists kept bleeding on account of having been bound so tightly, and I couldn’t feel my hands. My entire body, including my head and my legs, was in excruciating pain.

The activists, released on May 21 and returned to South Korea, were diagnosed with serious injuries. Kim A-hyun suffered a perforated eardrum, while Kim Dong-hyeon was diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis, a condition where muscle tissue breaks down rapidly, with his blood test showing muscle damage markers over 30 times the normal level. A Korean-American activist arrested with them reportedly sustained a broken rib.

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When I started hyperventilating, I began to think that it was very likely that I might die.