Israel deports 2 activists detained for leading an aid flotilla to Gaza

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Tel Aviv, Israel (AP) — Israel deported two activists on Sunday after being detained for slightly over a week for leading an aid flotilla attempting to break the Israeli naval blockade of the Gaza Strip.

The two, Spanish-Swedish citizen of Palestinian origin Saif Abukeshek and Brazilian citizen Thiago Ávila, were among dozens of activists intercepted by the Israeli navy off the coast of Crete. Both are members of the Global Sumud Flotilla’s steering committee, whose mission is to break Israel’s naval blockade and bring some humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry called the two activists in a post on X on Sunday “professional provocateurs,” saying ”Israel will not allow any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza."

At the time of the arrest, Israeli authorities said the two had been detained for questioning, and that Abukeshek was “suspected of affiliation with a terrorist organization” and Ávila was “suspected of illegal activity,” without providing evidence. No formal charges have been publicized against the two, the last activists who were held in Israel.

Spain and Brazil have condemned“the kidnapping of two of their citizens in international waters by the Government of Israel" in a joint statement at the time. The two activists’ detention sparked solidarity protests in several countries.

After arriving in Athens, Abukeshek insisted that he would continue protesting Israel’s blockade of Gaza and what he said was the mistreatment of Palestinian prisoners in Israel.

“We have to continue mobilizing. We can’t forget the Palestinian prisoners,” he said in a video comment posted on the Global Sumud Flotilla's X account.

In all, 22 boats and 175 activists were intercepted by the Israeli navy. Activists said Israeli forces stormed their vessels, smashed engines and detained some of those onboard. The incident occurred hundreds of miles (kilometers) from Gaza and Israel overnight from Wednesday to Thursday.

Israeli officials said they needed to take early action against the flotilla before it reached Israeli waters because of the high number of boats involved.

The flotilla’s latest attempt to reach Gaza comes less than a year after Israeli authorities foiled a previous effort by the group. That attempt involved about 50 vessels and around 500 activists, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, Nelson Mandela’s grandson Mandla Mandela, and several lawmakers.

Israel arrested, detained and later deported the participants, including Ávila, who claimed Israeli authorities abused them while in detention. Israeli authorities denied the accusations.

In Gaza, an Israeli strike hit a vehicle, killing at least two people, including a Hamas police officer, according to the Nasser hospital, which received the casualties.

The vehicle was struck late Sunday morning in Al-Amal neighborhood in the southern city of Khan Younis, said the civil defense, a first responders’ agency operating under the Hamas-run Interior Ministry.

The two killed included Col. Wessam Abdel-Hadi, who heads the police investigation department in Khan Younis, the hospital said.

The Israeli military said it was reviewing the strike.

The fatalities were the latest among Palestinians in the coastal enclave since an October fragile ceasefire deal attempted to halt a more than two-year war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

While the heaviest fighting has subsided, the shaky ceasefire has seen almost daily Israeli fire.

Israeli forces have carried out repeated airstrikes and frequently fire on Palestinians near military- held zones, killing at least 850 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry.

The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by United Nations agencies and independent experts. But it does not give a breakdown of civilians and militants.

Militants have carried out shooting attacks on troops, and Israel says its strikes are in response to that and other violations. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire.

Israel's military said Sunday it destroyed two tunnels in Israeli-controlled areas in central Gaza and that troops found several hideouts and weapons in the tunnels. It shared footage of what it said were the hideouts. The footage couldn’t be independently verified.

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Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Renata Brito in Barcelona, Spain contributed to this report.