Singgih Wiryono, Jakarta – Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) activist As'ad Aras recounted one of the dark rooms where GSF activists were tortured after being captured by Israeli soldiers.
He said each GSF activist was put into the room one by one, then tortured, regardless of age or gender.
"There was a small container (room) that we had to go through one by one, that's where the torture began", he said on the Kompas TV ROSI program on Thursday evening May 28.
Aras's injury was a blow to the jaw, so he was unable to open his mouth to eat. In addition to the jaw injury, he was also knocked down and trampled by Israeli soldiers.
Aras said however that the torture he suffered was the lightest compared to other GSF activists.
"I think it was the lightest, because some of our Indonesian colleagues were electrocuted twice, including our senior Om Heru", he said.
Heru Wijaya, said Aras, still has to undergo treatment because of the torture inflicted by Israel.
Screams from the torture chamber
Aras's most vivid memory is that when he emerged from the torture chamber, the activists immediately embraced and encouraged each other.
But the physical wounds were not over; his soul trembled every time screams emanated from the room where he was tortured.
"Every time we heard it (the screams) we would get out of the container and wait in the open space to see who else was being tortured", he said.
The torture suffered varied, including not only electric shocks, but also rubber bullets fired at close range. Aras is sure of this because he saw troops carrying firearms inside the torture chamber.
The GSF activists were arrested by the Israeli Navy on May 18. They were arrested one by one while sailing on a humanitarian mission to Gaza, Palestine.
There were nine Indonesian nationals (WNI) in the group of activists. They were released from Israeli territory to Turkey after five days of detention.
The Indonesian activists arrived at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta on a flight from Turkey on Sunday May 24.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Jeritan dari Ruang Gelap Tempat Aktivis GSF Disiksa Militer Israel".]
