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global sumud flotilla
'We Cannot Forget the Palestinian Prisoners,' Freed Gaza Flotilla Member Says While Returning Home
“I left behind me thousands of Palestinian prisoners—children, women, and men," said Saif Abu Keshek after he and Thiago Ávila were released by Israel without charges.
May 11, 2026
As the final two Global Sumud Flotilla members violently abducted at sea by Israeli forces last month made their way home following their release without charge, one of the activists said Sunday that the world must remember the thousands of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Saif Abu Keshek and Thiago Ávila—whom Israel accused of having links to Hamas, without providing evidence—were seized in international waters off the coast of Greece during the night of April 29-30. They were among the roughly 175 people aboard the flotilla, which was attempting to break the decadeslong Israeli blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid to its people amid an ongoing genocide.
After suffering abuse that allegedly included broken ribs, noses, and other injuries, all of the flotilla members except Abu Keshek and Ávila were released. The pair was taken to Israel for further interrogation. Israel twice extended their detention for further interrogation, which, according to their legal representatives, included physical and psychological abuse amounting to torture. The men reportedly went on a hunger strike to protest their detention.
United Nations officials, Brazil, and Spain all called for the pair's release. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva condemned their detention as "a serious affront to international law."
As Abu Keshek—a Spanish-Swedish national of Palestinian origin—arrived in Greece on Sunday following his deportation from Israel, he implored the world to remember the suffering of Palestinians imprisoned for their physical and intellectual resistance to Israeli oppression.
"I left behind me thousands of Palestinian prisoners—children, women, and men," he said in Athens. "I am sure that the treatment I faced does not compare to the suffering they are going through, the testimonies we hear of their torture, of their violation on a daily basis. We have to continue mobilizing. We cannot forget the Palestinian prisoners.”
Ávila, meanwhile, transited through Egypt en route to his native Brazil after his deportation. He is expected to arrive in São Paulo on Monday afternoon. Ávila's mother, Teresa Regina de Ávila e Silva, died while he was held in Israel.
Global Sumud Flotilla issued a statement following the activists' release, which it called "a victory over Israel’s attempts to criminalize the flotilla movement and smear international solidarity with Palestine as 'terrorism.'"
"If Israel had any evidence to support its outrageous accusations that the flotilla was affiliated with Hamas or engaged in unlawful activity, Thiago and Saif would not be released without charges," the statement says. "Their release further exposes these claims for what they are: politically motivated propaganda aimed at justifying violence against civilian flotilla participants and suppressing growing global resistance to Israel’s genocide and settler-colonial violence."
"However, their release underscores a painful reality: Thiago and Saif had governments, diplomatic channels, and international visibility advocating for them," Global Sumud Flotilla stressed. "Millions of Palestinians living under brutal Israeli occupation have no such political protection. More than 10,000 Palestinians remain imprisoned in Israeli dungeons and torture camps, subjected to starvation, abuse, isolation, medical neglect, sexual assault, and other cruel and degrading treatment, without international intervention or accountability."
Other Palestine defenders also used the activists' release to draw attention to the plight of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
"We insist that the global mobilization for the release of Saif and Thiago must not stop but must instead grow for the liberation of all Palestinian prisoners jailed by the Zionist regime," said Samidoun, also known as the Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, "as well as Lebanese and Arab prisoners detained in its prisons, as well as the Palestinian prisoners and the prisoners for Palestine held in imperialist prisons around the world."
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'Tragedy for Thiago': Mother of Gaza Flotilla Activist Dies as Son Suffers Torture in Israel
One Brazilian lawmaker said Teresa Regina de Ávila e Silva's death occurred "against a backdrop of extreme distress for the family, with the unjustifiable detention of Thiago in Israel."
May 06, 2026
The mother of detained Brazilian Gaza flotilla activist Thiago Ávila died Tuesday while her son is allegedly being abused in Israeli custody after being seized off the coast of Greece last week.
Brazilian media reported that Teresa Regina de Ávila e Silva, 63, died after a decadeslong affliction with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disorder.
The Civil Police Union of the Federal District in Brasília—where Luana de Ávila, Ávila e Silva's daughter, is vice president—said in a statement that "Teresa Regina is remembered as a woman of admirable joy and strength, whose life was marked by her ability to face life with lightness, dignity, and love."
"Throughout her journey, she built strong bonds with everyone around her, leaving behind a legacy of affection, presence, and care for her family," the statement continued. "Later in her life, she faced a delicate condition, which she confronted with courage and serenity, always supported by the unconditional dedication of her children, grandchildren, nephews, and all her family and friends."
Erika Kokay, a member of Brazil's ruling Workers' Party representing Brasília in the Federal Chamber of Deputies, said on X that "Teresa will be remembered as a woman of strength and joy, who faced life's challenges with dignity and left a legacy of love for her family."
"My solidarity is even deeper when considering that this grief is unfolding against a backdrop of extreme distress for the family, with the unjustifiable detention of Thiago in Israel," Kokay added. "He was arrested while on a humanitarian mission headed to the Gaza Strip, enduring violations of his rights."
Thiago Ávila and at least 175 other Global Sumud Flotilla members were intercepted and abducted by Israeli forces on April 30 approximately 45 nautical miles from the Greek coast and more than 600 nautical miles from Gaza while trying to deliver humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory in dozens of boats.
After allegedly enduring abuse and brutal attacks that left over 30 flotilla activists with injuries including concussions and broken ribs and noses, all but two of the convoy's members were released.
Ávila and another member of the Global Sumud Flotilla steering committee, Spanish-Swedish national Saif Abu Keshek, were taken to Israel, which claims without evidence that the pair have links to Hamas, the militant Palestinian resistance group that led the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Israeli authorities have twice extended the pair's detention. According to the Global Sumud Flotilla, Ávila and Abu Keshek “are being subjected to systemic psychological torture and explicit threats to the lives of their families.”
Adalah Legal Center, which represents the pair, said Ávila is being "subjected to repeated interrogations lasting up to eight hours," and “interrogators have explicitly threatened him, stating he would either be ‘killed’ or ‘spend 100 years in jail.’”
“Both activists remain in total isolation, subjected to 24/7 high-intensity lighting in their cells, and kept blindfolded whenever they are moved, including during medical examinations,” the group added.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, and their respective governments have condemned the activists' detention and demanded their release.
On Wednesday, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights joined calls for the pair's release, asserting that "it is not a crime to show solidarity and attempt to bring humanitarian aid to the Palestinian population in Gaza, who are in dire need of it."
Gazans are suffering from 31 months of what UN experts say is a genocidal war and siege perpetrated by Israel, whose leader, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is a fugitive from the International Criminal Court. The Hague-based tribunal accuses Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, including murder and forced starvation.
Since October 2023, more than 250,000 Palestinians have been killed or wounded—including thousands of bodies still buried beneath rubble—and most of the Gaza Strip's more than 2 million people have suffered forced displacement, starvation, or illness caused by Israel's onslaught.
Ávila isn't the first high-profile person to lose his mother while jailed by Israel. Samiha Abu Safiya died of a heart attack attributed to “severe sadness” after her son, Kamal Adwan Hospital director Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, was imprisoned by Israeli forces, including in the notorious Sde Teiman prison. Abu Safiya—who has allegedly been subjected to torture including electric shock and has suffered broken ribs—is still being held by Israel.
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Tlaib Leads Dems Decrying Trump Admin Failure to Protect US Citizens Abducted From Gaza Flotilla
Israeli forces intercepted and detained at least 175 people off the coast of Greece, including 14 Americans, some of whom reportedly suffered broken bones and other injuries.
May 05, 2026
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and 18 other House Democrats on Tuesday condemned the US State Department's failure to protect 14 Americans aboard the latest humanitarian aid convoy seized by Israeli forces en route to Gaza, as well as the agency's threat to punish US participants in the flotilla.
"On Wednesday April 29, 2026, Israeli military forces illegally intercepted and attacked nearly two dozen civilian vessels in international waters and abducted at least 175 unarmed humanitarians, journalists, and solidarity activists taking part in the Global Sumud Flotilla, a brave effort to end the Israeli government's ongoing starvation blockade of Gaza and deliver essential food and medical aid, establish a humanitarian corridor, and save lives," the lawmakers wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
"This attack on a civilian humanitarian mission involving participants from over 55 countries, including the United States, conducted an unprecedented 600 miles into international waters, is a grave violation of international law," the letter states. "It demands action and accountability from the United States to protect abducted US citizens, to allow the free flow of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza enduring forced starvation, and an end to the decades of impunity that enable these crimes."
The lawmakers continued:
We are outraged that instead of speaking out and taking action to ensure the safety and immediate release of the at least 14 US citizens illegally abducted by the Israeli military, the Department of State went out of its way to issue a formal condemnation of their humanitarian efforts, smearing them with libelous falsehoods that expose them to greater danger and violence and threatening allied countries who allow port access to this humanitarian mission. This is an abdication of your duty to protect the safety of all Americans and is an Orwellian distortion where providing food to the hungry is terror and forced starvation is peace.
While we are relieved by reporting that most abducted flotilla passengers have now been released and will not be forced to suffer the abuse and inhumane conditions endured for days by participants of the previous flotilla illegally detained in Israeli prison, we are disturbed by reports that abductees were violently abused while held on Israeli vessels and that multiple US citizens have been hospitalized following their release. After all this, it is extremely alarming that US participants in the flotilla may face additional unjust persecution upon their return home.
Numerous people aboard the flotilla reported being brutally beaten by their captors, with some allegedly suffering broken ribs, noses, and other injuries, some of which reportedly required hospitalization.
Instead of assisting US victims, State Department spokesperson Thomas Piggott said his agency "will explore using available tools to impose consequences on those who provide support to this pro-Hamas flotilla."
The lawmakers' letter calls on Rubio and the Trump administration "to rescind these threats against flotilla participants, their supporters, and states that open their ports to this humanitarian mission and urge you to use your immense leverage to secure the freedom of all passengers who continue to be illegally detained."
"Above all else, we urge you to address the issue at the root of this voyage: the brutal Israeli blockade and genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza," the Democrats said.
"The ongoing forced starvation of the Palestinian population in Gaza is a direct result of the Israeli government’s siege and blockade of the territory, which continues to impede the entry of food and humanitarian aid in flagrant violation of legally binding orders from the International Court of Justice," they continued.
"Likewise, the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry has determined that the Israeli government is committing the crime of genocide in Gaza and that this blockade is deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of the Palestinian people in whole or in part," the letter notes.
"While the Trump administration fails to use its immense leverage to end this blockade and fulfill the United States’ binding legal obligations under the Genocide Convention, the activists on board the flotilla are an example of profound solidarity and humanitarianism," the lawmakers added. "Undeterred by this latest attack, additional flotilla ships continue their mission to deliver aid to Gaza. We call on you to deter any further hostile actions against the flotilla and ensure the successful completion of its humanitarian mission.”
Earlier Tuesday, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva condemned Israel’s twice-extended detention of two Global Sumud Flotilla members—Thiago Ávila of Brazil and Spanish-Swedish national Saif Abu Keshek—who Israeli authorities claim without providing evidence are linked to the Palestinian militant resistance group Hamas. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has also condemned the activists' abduction and demanded their release, as have numerous humanitarian groups and advocates around the world.
In addition to Tlaib—the only Palestinian American member of Congress—the letter was signed by Reps. Mark Pocan (Wis.), Delia Ramirez (Ill.), Ro Khanna (Calif.), Jesús "Chuy" García (Ill.), André Carson (Ind.), Jim McGovern (Mass.), Pramila Jayapal (Wash.), Greg Casar (Texas), Henry "Hank" Johnson (Ga.), Nydia Velásquez (NY), Ayanna Pressley (Mass.), Maxine Dexter (Ore.), Summer Lee (Pa.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.), Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ), Al Green (Texas), Lateefah Simon (Calif.), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY).
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