JERUSALEM: More than a dozen activists being held by Israel after their aid boat was intercepted en route to Gaza launched a hunger strike on Monday to protest their detention, according to a local NGO assisting them.
At least five of the 21 passengers of the Freedom Flotilla vessel Handala have agreed to be summarily deported after the boat was stopped and boarded by the Israeli navy while attempting to break a military blockade of the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
The legal aid group Adalah said that on Monday afternoon, “hearings concluded at Givon Prison, concerning the continued detention of the 14 volunteers who... refused to consent to an expedited deportation process.”
“During the hearings, the volunteers stressed that their mission was humanitarian — motivated by the need to act against Israel’s illegal siege and the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza,” the group said in a statement.
One US activist reported “severe physical violence by Israeli forces,” while others described being held in poor conditions, Adalah said.
