Israeli justice has validated on appeal the extension of the incarceration of the two activists of the "Gaza flotilla" arrested off the coast of Greece until Sunday, AFP learned on Wednesday from their lawyer.
Published on: 06/05/2026 - 15:45 Modified on: 06/05/2026 - 16:03
As in first instance, Israeli justice validated on appeal the extension until Sunday of the incarceration of two activists from the "Gaza flotilla" arrested off the coast of Greece, AFP learned on Wednesday May 6 from their lawyer.
“The Beersheba court rejected our appeal and accepted all the state's arguments,” Hadeel Abu Salih, the lawyer for Spaniard Saïf Abu Keshek and Brazilian Thiago Avila, told AFP.
The two activists were arrested last Thursday on board their boats off the coast of Greece by the Israeli army, hundreds of kilometers from Gaza, an action "completely illegal" according to Spain.
The army took them to Israel, saying it suspected them of links to Hamas, something activists strongly dispute.
Israeli justice validated the extension of their detention until Sunday despite protests from Spain, Brazil and the UN, which called for their “immediate release” on Wednesday.
An NGO denounces “ill-treatment”
Before the Beersheba Court of Appeal, the case of Saif Abu Keshek, of Palestinian origin, was examined first. He entered the courtroom with his feet shackled, dressed in a brown prison outfit, surrounded by two guards, according to an AFP journalist on site.
The case of Thiago Avila was then examined, also in his presence. The two men have been on hunger strike since their arrest, according to the Israeli NGO Adalah which represents them.
The NGO denounced the "ill-treatment" and "psychological abuse" inflicted, according to it, on Saïf Abu Keshek and Thiago Avila in prison, citing eight-hour interrogations, powerful lighting in cells 24 hours a day, total isolation and systematically traveling blindfolded, even during medical visits.
The flotilla initially consisted of around fifty boats, with the aim, according to its organizers, of breaking the Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory devastated by the war, where access for humanitarian aid remains severely restricted.
Spain maintained that Israel had provided "no proof" of any link between its national and Palestinian Hamas, in power in Gaza. Brazil again demanded on Tuesday the "immediate release" of the two men, through President Lula.
With AFP
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