The Spanish activist Saif Abu Keshek and the Brazilian Thiago Avila were brought before an Israeli court this Sunday, after the country’s troops captured them aboard the Gaza Flotilla, with which they were trying to bring humanitarian aid to the besieged Palestinian strip. Both have reported, through their lawyers, that they have been tied, blinded and immobilized and, at least one of them, also beaten.
The flotilla of more than 50 vessels had set sail from Spain, France and Italy with the aim of breaking the Israeli blockade of Gaza and bringing humanitarian supplies to the devastated Palestinian territory.
They were intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters off Greece early Thursday; Israel claimed to have removed some 175 activists, two of whom were taken to Israel for interrogation. The rest were taken safely to the Hellenic country.
Spanish citizen Saif Abu Keshek and Brazilian Thiago Avila appeared in court in Ashkelon this Sunday. The court extended his detention for two days, said Miriam Azem, international advocacy coordinator for rights group Adalah. Israeli authorities had requested to extend his detention for four days, Azem said.
On Saturday, Adalah reported that her lawyers had met with the two activists detained in Ashkelon’s Shikma prison. Avila told lawyers that he was “subjected to extreme brutality” when the boats were captured, adding that he was “dragged face down on the ground and beaten so severely that he lost consciousness twice.”
“Ávila was dragged face down on the ground and beaten so severely that he lost consciousness twice”
Since arriving in Israel, he claimed to have been “kept in isolation and blindfolded,” according to Adalah.
Abu Keshek was also “hand-bound and blindfolded and forced to lie face down on the ground from the moment of his capture” until he reached Israel, the group said.
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs alleged that the two activists were affiliated with an organization that was sanctioned by the US Treasury and that is why it is holding them in custody. That group – the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad (PCPA) – has been accused by Washington of “acting clandestinely on behalf of” the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Tel Aviv alleged that Abu Keshek was a prominent member of the PCPA, and that Avila was also linked to the organization and was “suspected of illegal activity.”
Among the alleged crimes identified by Israel are those of “collaborating with the enemy in times of war, contacting a foreign agent, belonging to a terrorist organization and providing services to it, and transferring assets for a terrorist organization,” Adalah reported.
Spain has rejected the Israeli accusation against him and claims that Abu Keshek is being “illegally detained.”
The Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs requested, in fact, on Sunday the “immediate release” of Abu Keshek. “The Government of Spain demands his immediate release,” the ministry said in a comment sent to the AFP agency, adding that the Spanish consul in Tel Aviv accompanied Abu Keshek to the hearing.
Call from the organizers
The Sumud Global Flotilla (GSF) last night urged the governments of Spain and Brazil to “act immediately” following yesterday’s hearing. “The participants of the Sumud Global Flotilla acted because the world has failed to stop the destruction of Palestinian life. Governments now face a clear dilemma: respect international law or remain complicit in its destruction,” a statement from the activist group indicates.
Specifically, GSF asked governments around the world, but especially those of Spain and Brazil, to release the detainees; launch “independent public investigations” into the arrest of these two activists in international waters and impose “significant sanctions” on Israel for its “continued violations of international law.” They also demand that Israel be held accountable for what happened, as well as for the “ongoing genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank.”
“The ruling (…) reflects a broader pattern in which Israeli occupation courts legitimize illegal detention and state violence in cases involving Palestinians and their allies,” GSF continued in its statement. And it adds: “Processes that are based on secret evidence and alleged security problems have long generated serious concerns among international legal experts about the absence of procedural guarantees and the continued use of the legal system to support policies that violate international law,” explains Agencia EFE.
“Prosecutions that rely on secret evidence and alleged security concerns have long raised serious concerns among international legal experts about the lack of procedural safeguards”
Likewise, the Flotilla also announced that they will intensify their civil resistance actions with camping trips that will begin this Monday in Brussels and will extend to other European cities.
For their part, the two detainees maintain their own fight behind bars, since from the first moment they have been on a hunger strike.
“Security and dignity”
In addition, the Foreign Affairs spokesperson of the European Union (EU), Anitta Hipper, urged this Sunday to treat the two activists who remain detained “with safety and dignity.”
“Although we advise against flotillas due to the risks they entail and that humanitarian aid must be distributed through appropriate channels, any detained person must be treated with safety and dignity, and in accordance with international law,” Hipper said in statements to EFE.
The community spokesperson added that the head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, “is in contact” with the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, and recalled that “consular protection is guaranteed by the Member States.”
