Cork grandfather describes ‘barbaric’ detention after Gaza aid flotilla arrest
Swedish activist Greta Thunberg arrives at the Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025 after being deported from Israel for taking part in a Gaza-bound aid flottila. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Crammed into a cell that stank of urine, with nothing but dirty water to drink for days, Cork grandfather and activist Paddy O’Donovan said he was woken repeatedly through the night by guards pointing machine guns at him.
By day, Mr O'Donovan said he was locked in a cage under the sun, surrounded by dogs and armed guards.
“At times you thought you were going to be shot,” he said.
Mr O’Donovan, 61, had been aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla, a fleet of 42 boats attempting to bring aid to besieged Gaza.
All of the vessels were intercepted last week, and those on board were arrested and detained.
“They sank my boat out at sea,” Mr O’Donovan said.
“There was a destroyer, a gunboat, and two RIBs [rigid inflatable hull boats] with 16 [Israeli] soldiers on each RIB.
“They boarded us and they forced us down below [deck] and that's when they started cutting the pipes from the seawater in it into the engine and they started sinking the boat. And they just told us to stay where we were.
“We were inside the boat and they had machine guns on us. And they waited until the water came up to our knees.
“And at that stage, I was fearing that we were all going be shot. Because they were pointing their guns and they were after cocking the guns.
“And then they eventually turned around and they said ‘oh we're going to save you now’ after leaving us think they were going to kill us. And then they took us off and they sank the boat.
“They brought us into a port and they tie-wrapped our arms behind our back and they had us lying face down for hours on our knees with our face on the ground and they were shouting and photographing and all this kind of stuff for the Israeli media.
“It was barbaric. I've never experienced the like of it. I didn't think there were human beings like that."
Mr O’Donovan was among 16 Irish citizens arrested and detained for crewing the humanitarian flotilla.
Sinn Féin Senator Chris Andrews and Cork comedian and activist Tadhg Hickey were also detained in Ketsiot Prison in Israel.
Other detainees included activist Greta Thunberg, Nelson Mandela’s grandson Mandla Mandela, and several European politicians.
About 450 people were detained by Israel for being on the flotilla, which was attempting to break the blockade and deliver aid to Gaza.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry said it offered voluntary deportation to all the activists.
Speaking before boarding a flight from Athens to Ireland, Mr O’Donovan said he was relieved the ordeal was over.
But he added that, as difficult as it was for the Irish detainees, Palestinian prisoners in Ketsiot suffered far worse.
“They [Israeli guards] seem to take delight in torturing people," Mr O'Donovan said.
“We were locked inside these cells for days. There was no water given. We had to drink dirty tap water. They were pointing guns in at nighttime when we were trying to sleep.
“They'd wake us up and they'd move us to another block and different cells. They were changing people around all the time, and shouting and roaring and bringing dogs in, these fully armed combat units coming in. So it was scary enough.
“At times you thought you were going to be shot. They were eight-man cells with about 16 or 20 people in some cells.”
Mr O'Donovan said that up to 17 people were crammed into his cell.
“Then they'd take people out and people would go missing," he said.
“And they wouldn't give us our medication. We met one doctor and they asked what meds you were on and they took a note. But then they didn't give anybody anything. They didn't even give the diabetics insulin.
“So we started [hunger] striking and then they came in and got more brutal."
Mr O’Donovan said he was on hunger strike for all five days of his incarceration.
He said those refusing food were mockingly served “banquets”, while others were given meals that were barely edible.
“The only people that had a decent looking food were the people that were on hunger strike," he said.
The cell had one tap that only produced dirty water and a single toilet.
“It was all psychological torture,” Mr O’Donovan said.
Despite the horrific treatment, Mr O’Donovan said it was nothing compared to what Palestinian prisoners endured.
“Those poor people are suffering. Their treatment is just horrific.
“They were chained with their hands to their feet and they were bent over and they were blindfolded.
“These guards seemed to relish it, the inhumane treatment that they gave you.
“And then on the last day their mood started changing, they were becoming nicer because they know the world is going to soon find out what they were like.”
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