Sri Lanka has expressed “deep concern and profound distress” over footage posted by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir that the government said appeared to depict “dehumanising treatment” of detainees from the Global Sumud Flotilla, including a Sri Lankan national.
In a statement issued Wednesday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism said it was already engaging with the Israeli Foreign Ministry through diplomatic channels to secure immediate consular access to the affected Sri Lankan citizen and to obtain guarantees for her safety, wellbeing, and dignity. The ministry said discussions were also underway over her “swift and safe repatriation to Sri Lanka.”
The detained Sri Lankan is Sameera Mehboobdeen, who left Sri Lanka in April to join the international civilian convoy aimed at breaking the blockade on Gaza. The Israeli Navy began intercepting the flotilla on Monday, weeks after an earlier attempt was thwarted and two activists detained. More than 50 vessels had set sail from Marmaris, Turkey, on what organisers called the final leg toward Gaza, with nearly 100 nationalities represented.
The Ben-Gvir videos, released by the minister’s own office, show activists arrested at the port of Ashdod, with some held in stress positions in a makeshift holding area. Internationally, the footage has drawn condemnation and a rare public reprimand from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The statement is the second formal escalation in Sri Lanka’s response to the case, following the bilateral talks initiated on May 19 seeking Mehboobdeen’s release. Wednesday’s intervention shifts the public posture from consular processing to direct expression of concern over treatment in detention.
Sources: Ada Derana, Newswire.
