Detained Flotilla Activists on Thirst and Hunger Strike
UN calls for pair’s release but court rules in favour of their continued detention.
by Tom Midlane
8 May 2026
An activist kidnapped by Israel in international waters has escalated his hunger strike to a ‘thirst strike’ after an Israeli court rejected an appeal against his illegal detention.
Brazilian national Thiago Ávila and Saif Abukeshek, a Spanish activist of Palestinian origin, have spent the last week on hunger strike.
They were both detained on 30 April when the 180-strong Global Samud Flotilla (GSF) was intercepted by the Israeli navy off the coast of Greece.
Abukeshek has now begun refusing water in what GSF said was a call “for the international community to take action to end the manufactured famine and starvation in Gaza.”
Doctors say the average person can survive for around three days without water but the exact time depends on factors such as age, health and environmental conditions like heat and humidity.
The UN has urged Israel to release the two detained activists “immediately and unconditionally” following reports the pair had been subjected to physical and psychological abuse.
“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,” responded UN human rights office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan.
“Disturbing accounts of severe mistreatment of Abukeshek and Ávila must be investigated, and those responsible must be brought to justice.”
An Israel court has since rejected an appeal against the extension of the duo’s detention.
Ávila and Abukeshek reported being subjected to interrogations lasting up to eight hours, during which time they were beaten, insulted and forced to lie on their fronts with their forehead against the ground for hours at a time, Lubna Tuma, their lawyer told Al Jazeera.
The men were allegedly kept in total isolation and in an illuminated room in order to induce sleep deprivation.
The main fleet of the flotilla set sail on 12 April, with delegates from 56 countries attempting to break the siege of Gaza and deliver aid to the Palestinian population.
Tom Midlane is a freelance journalist.