Three activists who were detained and then released during a humanitarian mission to the Gaza Strip this month claimed Thursday they were sexually and physically abused in the hands of Israeli soldiers. Korean nationals Kim Ah-hyun and Kim Dong-hyeon, and Korean American Jonathan Victor Lee, made the claims during a press conference held days after they arrived in the country following their release last week. The three had boarded two different aid boats bound for Gaza before being intercepted and detained by Israeli forces. Some of the abuse allegations have been raised before, but the Israeli Embassy in Seoul has denied the activists were either detained or mistreated. “The men were tortured with Tasers, while the women were sexually harassed and sexually assaulted,” Kim Ah-hyun said of the people who traveled with her. “We could hear the sounds of the soldiers mocking and giving orders, and the sounds of the travelers being beaten. The screams were so long; it was suffocating.” One sailor was shot in the thigh but was left unattended, while the container where they were held was “ful
