One of the peace activists returning to Turkey after Israeli forces raided their aid flotilla has said they were exposed to maltreatment by commandos during the assault.

Nilüfer Çetin, who had hidden with her baby in her cabin's bathroom aboard the Mavi Marmara, said that "the ship turned into a lake of blood" after the attack. "They brought us to our knees and handcuffed, even the injured us," she said on Tuesday during a press conference held at the headquarters of the Humanitarian Aid Foundation (İHH), the Turkish association that took the initiative to organize the flotilla.

"When the Mavi Marmara continued on its course, the harassment turned into an attack. They used smoke bombs, followed by gas canisters. They started to rappel onto the ship from helicopters," she said, calling the clashes that then erupted "extremely bad and brutal."

Some 400 Turkish activists were in the six-ship flotilla, along with more than 30 Greeks and people of some 20 other nationalities, including Germans, Americans and Russians. Çetin returned to İstanbul after Israeli officials warned her that jail would be too harsh for her child.

Çetin added that Israeli vessels harassed the flotilla for two hours, starting at around 10 p.m. on Sunday and then returned at around 4 a.m. Monday morning, firing warning shots and telling the ships to turn back.

"I was one of the first victims to be released because I had a child," she told reporters, but "they confiscated everything, our telephones, laptops are all gone." Her husband, the ship's engineer, is still being held by Israeli authorities.

Noting that there was an Israeli deputy onboard with them, Çetin said the woman was very helpful to them. Çetin added that nearly half of those onboard were women and that her baby was the only baby on the ship.

Çetin said the Israeli naval forces asked four questions during their interrogation, including: "Did you know going to the Gaza Strip is forbidden? Did you know what the ship aimed to do when setting off on the trip? Why did you come, knowing it was forbidden to do so? Would you rather be arrested, stay here or be extradited?"

Other returnees confirmed mistreatment and violence.

Other peace activists returning to their countries after Israeli forces raided the aid flotilla said on Tuesday that the commandos had beaten passengers and used electric shocks during the assault. Bayram Kalyon, who was onboard the Mavi Marmara, also arrived in Turkey yesterday.

"The captain of the vessel Mavi Marmara told us: 'They are firing randomly; they are breaking the windows and entering inside. You should get out of here as soon as possible.' That was our last conversation with him," he said yesterday, while responding to questions by reporters at İstanbul Atatürk Airport. Kalyon also noted they had been subjected to severe maltreatment while in custody.

Another volunteer returning to Turkey, Mutlu Tiryaki, denied claims leveled by Israeli authorities that weapons were onboard. "When we went up to the deck, they emerged from helicopters and military boats and attacked us. They approached our vessel with military ships after issuing a warning. We told them we were unarmed. Our sole weapon was water," he told reporters yesterday.

Several Greek volunteers also returned home. Greek peace activist Dimitris Gielalis, who had been with the flotilla, said: "They came up and used plastic bullets. We had beatings, we had electric shocks, any method you can think of, they used."

He said the boat's captain was beaten for refusing to leave the wheel and had sustained non-life-threatening injuries, while a cameraman filming the raid was hit with a rifle butt in the eye.

Mihalis Grigoropoulos told reporters at Athens International Airport that Israelis rappelled from helicopters and threw ropes from inflatable boats, climbing aboard, adding that there was teargas and live ammunition.

"We did not resist at all; we couldn't, even if we had wanted to. What could we have done against the commandos who climbed aboard? The only thing some people tried was to delay them from getting to the bridge, forming a human shield. They were fired upon with plastic bullets and were stunned with electric devices," he said.

Another Greek volunteer, Aris Papadokustopoulos, also criticized Israel for its raid in international waters. "We took part in the mission 'One Ship for Gaza,' carrying humanitarian aid, wheelchairs, pharmaceutical supplies, building materials and nothing else. The action of the Israeli commandos was pure piracy in international waters. The international community must condemn this and react. We cannot allow Israel to play the role of the policeman in the area," he told reporters.