Poles from the Sumud flotilla landed in Warsaw. “The delegation is disappointed with the attitude of the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs”

The Polish participants of the humanitarian flotilla to the Gaza Strip – Omar Faris, Nina Ptak and Franciszek Sterczewski, as well as the British journalist of Polish origin, Ewa Jasiewicz – landed on Wednesday at Chopin Airport in Warsaw. We must all stand together against this genocidal war, Faris told reporters.

Poles were among a group of over 470 people from 47 countries taking part in the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF). A humanitarian convoy was intercepted last week on the night between Wednesday and Thursday in international waters by the Israeli navy. 42 ships were seized and their crews were brought to Israel, detained and deported.

Faris, Ptak and Sterczewski were deported to Athens on Monday. Jasiewicz, who has British citizenship, had left Israel earlier.

After arriving at Warsaw Chopin Airport, the head of the Polish delegation, Omar Faris, said that we all must stand together against the genocidal war in the Gaza Strip. – They treated us absolutely brutally. For several hours, I am 73 years old, they tied my hands behind my back and put me on stones – Faris reported his stay in prison at a press briefing.

Faris said that during interrogation in an Israeli prison, activists were asked, among other things, about their relations with Hamas. – Our problem is the occupation, which began 42 years before the rise of Hamas, he emphasized.

– We want a solution, like in South Africa, a democratic state for everyone – he added.

Sterczewski: The Polish delegation of the flotilla is disappointed with the attitude of the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

KO MP, one of the participants of the humanitarian flotilla to the Gaza Strip, Franciszek Sterczewski, emphasized after returning to Warsaw that the Polish delegation of the flotilla was deeply disappointed with the attitude of the Deputy Prime Minister, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Radosław Sikorski. Why did Minister Sikorski downplay the situation – the MP asked.

Sterczewski emphasized that the Polish flotilla delegation was deeply disappointed with Sikorski's attitude. – Why did Minister Sikorski downplay the situation at a time when we were doing everything to end this genocide and draw the world's attention to what was happening there? – the MP asked. As he noted, he does not expect Sikorski to resign, but “an immediate change in the policy of the Polish government.”

– We expect Minister Sikorski not to bill us for trying to do everything we can as civilians and activists. We expect that if Sikorski is able to accuse Putin of his war crimes, we expect him to be consistent and accuse Benjamin Netanyahu of the same crimes, or even worse ones, the MP added.

Sterczewski described that during the five days spent in Israeli custody “it was not nice.” – We weren't allowed to sleep. The guards shone flashlights in our eyes for hours and played music from Israeli propaganda films. We were attacked with dogs. There was spit on us. They were threatened with weapons, he said.

He emphasized that, after all, this situation is not about activists, but about Palestinians who are kept in the same prisons. As he said, about 11 thousand Palestinians, including over 400 children, are in custody in Israel. – We would like to point out that they are treated even worse there. They are often murdered and all human rights are violated, he noted.

– We have learned the hard way that the state of Israel is a barbaric and terrorist state to the same extent as, for example, Russia – said the KO MP. (PAP)

kl/ andr/ par/