Israel detained and transferred to its territory two of the activists of the Sumud Global Flotilla that was heading to Gaza and that it intercepted this week. He accuses the men of allegedly being linked to Hamas, something the detainees deny, while they denounce Israeli forces for torturing them. The countries of origin of the detainees, Spain and Brazil, denounce the arrest as an attack on international law.

First modification: 05/04/2026 - 02:47

Israel intercepted in international waters "illegally", according to governments such as Spain and Brazil, the Sumud Global Flotilla, a group of vessels with humanitarian aid that was heading to the Gaza Strip.

Following the interception last Thursday, April 30, Israeli forces claimed to have removed some 175 activists to be transferred to the Greek island of Crete. But, two of the passengers of the boats were taken to Israel by their troops to appear before the Justice of that country.

Israel's detention of these two activists has sparked international condemnation over the legality of the measure, while the detainees claim to have been tortured and mistreated by Israeli soldiers.

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Who are they?

These are two men, one of Spanish nationality with Palestinian roots and the other Brazilian.

Saif Abu Keshek has been living in Spain for 20 years and, according to 'OKDiario', he was born in Nablus, in the occupied West Bank. He was one of the founders in that country of the Global Movement to Gaza, the organization behind the flotilla initiative. He is also a member of the Palestinian Community in Catalonia and is closely linked to the union and social movements in Spain.

The other detainee is Thiago Ávila, a socio-environmentalist from Brazil. According to Global Sumud, Ávila has been working for the rights of the Palestinian population for more than 20 years.

“He is a member of the Steering Committee of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition and was one of the coordinators aboard the Madleen mission, which was intercepted and kidnapped by the Zionist entity in June 2025,” details the flotilla's website.

Abu Keshek and Ávila are being tortured by Israel

The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel (Adalah), an Israeli legal advocacy organization, reported visiting the two men on May 2 at a detention center in the Israeli port city of Ashkelon.

According to Adalah, both activists declared they were on hunger strike after allegedly being beaten repeatedly during their detention.

“Adalah maintains that the treatment given to the two activists, including the use of isolation, prolonged blindfolding and physical beatings, constitutes a serious violation of international law,” the group denounced.

The flotilla organization had already reported other complaints about physical abuse towards its participants, particularly against Abu Keshek. "Eyewitnesses have given chilling accounts of Abu Keshek's screams echoing through the ship as he was systematically tortured after being separated from the rest," Global Sumud explains.

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He also adds that, when the Israeli soldiers were preparing to arrest Ávila and his companion, "the participants were beaten, kicked and dragged along the deck with their hands tied behind their backs. They suffered broken noses, broken ribs and bloody beatings. They were even shot in the midst of the chaos."

The organizers of the initiative claim that at least 35 activists had to receive medical attention for the physical violence they received, according to their testimonies.

Why did Israel stop them?

The Israeli authorities accuse the detainees of allegedly committing crimes such as assisting the enemy in times of war, contact with a foreign agent, belonging to a terrorist organization and providing services to it, and transferring assets to a terrorist organization, as indicated by Adalah.

For her part, Hadeel Abu Salih, a lawyer for the men, has said that her clients deny the accusations. Abu Salih ruled in dialogue with Reuters that the arrest of Abu Keshek and Ávila was illegal due to lack of jurisdiction and added that the activists' trip was intended to help the Gazan population, not any militant group.

The lawyer also stated that the detainees were victims of violence during their trip to Israel and remained handcuffed and blindfolded until last Thursday.

An “attack on international law”

After the arrest of the men, Spain and Brazil demanded the immediate return of their citizens in a joint statement, in which they described the Israeli action as an “attack on international law.”

Other countries have also spoken out. Italy and Germany, also in a joint statement, were “deeply concerned” about the interception of the flotilla.

In contrast, the US State Department threatened to "impose consequences" against those who support Global Sumud, which it described as pro-Hamas, while it supported the measures taken by Israel against the group of boats.

That said, the organization that was traveling to Gaza urged the Governments of Spain and Brazil on May 3 to “act immediately,” after the Ashkelon Magistrates' Court extended the detention of the Palestinian-Spanish activist and the Brazilian for two more days this Sunday.

"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," the collective announced.

He also urged the international community to launch "independent public investigations" into the arrest of these two activists in international waters and impose "significant sanctions" on the Israeli government for its "continued violations of international law."

Palestinian rights activists say Israel and the United States wrongly confuse their defense of Palestinian rights with support for militants of the Islamist Hamas militia.

With Reuters, EFE, AP and local media

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