French anti-terror prosecutor opens torture inquiry into treatment of MP Marie Mesmeur aboard Gaza flotilla

The October 2025 flotilla and Mesmeur's account

The investigation stems from complaints by two people who were aboard a flotilla attempting to reach Gaza in October 2025. One of them is Marie Mesmeur, a member of parliament for La France Insoumise representing Ille-et-Vilaine. She says she was held on the vessel for nearly 24 hours before being transferred to Israel, where she spent four days in detention.

I had 10 days of temporary incapacity because of a cracked rib and bruises, haematomas, caused by the actions of the Israeli guards.

Mesmeur describes being deprived of food, water and medical care during her detention. Her lawyer, Raphaël Kempf, argues that her arrest in international waters and subsequent imprisonment were illegal and has called for an investigating judge to be appointed.

The crimes suffered by Marie Mesmeur are serious and must not go unpunished. She was arrested on the high seas and taken to Israel where she was imprisoned in a completely illegal manner.

A second inquiry into the May 2025 flotilla

The PNAT had already opened a preliminary investigation in early June 2026 into torture and war crimes linked to another Gaza flotilla intercepted in May 2025. That probe followed a report from the Quai d'Orsay concerning the treatment of French nationals who were on board.

Israeli far-right minister Itamar Ben Gvir posted a video showing activists from that flotilla kneeling with their hands bound, which triggered international condemnation. In late May 2026, both France and Ireland banned Ben Gvir from entering their territory.

Legal framework and international dimension

The new inquiry, opened on 1 July 2026, is being conducted under the 1984 New York Convention against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. It has been assigned to the Central Office for the Fight against Crimes against Humanity (OCLCH).

I welcome the opening of this investigation by the PNAT and I hope it will shed full light on the acts committed by the State of Israel, particularly in prison.

France is not alone in pursuing such cases. According to SudOuest, Italy and Australia have followed the French example and opened their own investigations into the treatment of flotilla participants.