World

Israeli court rejects appeal to free detained Gaza flotilla activists

An Israeli court has denied an appeal seeking the release of pro-Palestine activists Thiago Avila and Saif Abu Keshek, who were detained after Israeli forces seized a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, according to legal rights group Adalah.

In a statement, Adalah said the Beersheba District Court upheld an earlier ruling extending the detention of the two activists until Sunday morning.

The group said both Avila and Abu Keshek are currently on hunger strike.

“Adalah maintains that this decision is both unlawful and unreasonable,” the organisation said, adding that the pair are being held in “total isolation under punitive conditions despite the purely civilian nature of their mission”.