Returned activist says, "I was beaten by Israeli soldiers... I can't hear out of one ear"

[The Financial News] Two South Korean activists who were detained by the IDF after boarding a Gaza-bound aid ship and later released have returned home.
According to Yonhap News Agency and others on the 22nd, activists Kim Ah-hyun, whose activist name is Haecho, and Kim Dong-hyun arrived at Incheon International Airport at around 6:24 a.m. that day on a flight from Bangkok, Thailand.
Kim Ah-hyun was detained by the IDF in waters near the Gaza Strip on the 19th local time while sailing from Italy aboard the Lina al-Nabulsi en route to Gaza. Kim Dong-hyun was seized by the IDF on the 18th local time while passing through waters near Cyprus aboard the Freedom Flotilla Coalition's Kiriakos X. They were released on the 20th.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) repeatedly asked Israel to release and deport the two South Korean nationals immediately without detention. Israel then deported them directly, without taking them to a detention facility.
Jonathan Victor Lee, a Korean American who was released after boarding the ship with Kim Ah-hyun and uses the activist name Seungjun, is reportedly staying in Istanbul, Türkiye.
Kim Ah-hyun spoke with reporters that day and described what happened during the seizure.
She said, "We were illegally abducted by Israel while sailing to Gaza and thrown into prison." She added, "The Israeli occupation forces were extremely angry, and by the time we were put in prison, many people had already been beaten." She also said, "I was beaten too, and I can barely hear out of one ear."
Kim Dong-hyun said, "What Israel did to us was hijack our ships on the high seas, and routinely torture and detain civilians." He added, "We only experienced a small part of the violence Israel carries out, but it was truly unbearable."
Explaining why she wanted to go to Gaza, Kim Ah-hyun said, "Gaza is still isolated, and even after the negotiations, many people are starving from hunger, not from bombing. Because people are there, I thought we had to try sailing there again, even if the situation in the Middle East and the political climate are dangerous." She also said she would try again to sail to Gaza in the future.
Kim Ah-hyun was also arrested by the IDF and later released after taking part in the same activity in October last year.
At the time, MOFA issued a Passport surrender order to Kim Ah-hyun, but she had already left the country to sail again, and her passport was invalidated. Her return this time was made possible with a Travel Certificate issued by MOFA.
Meanwhile, about 430 activists from more than 40 countries, including the two, departed from places such as Greece and Italy earlier this month with the aim of breaking Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip and delivering aid supplies. They traveled on more than 50 ships, and all were detained by the IDF. The incident drew controversy after photos were released showing activists kneeling with their hands tied.
newssu@fnnews.com Kim Su-yeon Reporter