Spanish national Saif Abu Keshek and Brazilian national Thiago Avila appeared before a court in Ashkelon for a second hearing, after being brought to Israel last week following the interception of their vessel by Israeli forces off the coast of Greece.“The court approved their detention until Sunday morning,” said Miriam Azem of Adalah, which is providing legal representation.

An AFP journalist witnessed the activists being escorted into the courtroom with their legs shackled.The two were among dozens of individuals aboard a flotilla that had set sail from France, Spain and Italy with the stated aim of delivering humanitarian supplies to Gaza and challenging Israel’s long-standing blockade.

Adalah said the activists have been on a hunger strike for six days and alleged that both were subjected to physical and psychological abuse in detention. The group said they were being held in isolation under constant high-intensity lighting, with Avila allegedly exposed to extremely cold temperatures.“They are kept blindfolded at all times whenever they are moved outside their cells, including during medical examinations,” the group said.

Israeli authorities have rejected the allegations.During an earlier hearing, prosecutors presented a list of charges including assisting the enemy during wartime and membership in, and providing services to, a terrorist organization, according to Adalah.

Defense lawyers challenged Israel’s jurisdiction, arguing the activists had been unlawfully detained in international waters.Israel’s foreign ministry said both individuals were affiliated with the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad, which it alleged has links to Hamas. It described Abu Keshek as a leading member and said Avila was also suspected of involvement in illegal activity.

The flotilla was part of the Global Sumud initiative, whose previous attempt last year was similarly intercepted. Israeli forces stopped the latest convoy early on Thursday off Greece’s coast.Israel has maintained a blockade on Gaza since 2007 and controls access points into the territory.

Aid flows have been severely disrupted during the ongoing war that began in October 2023, contributing to shortages of essential supplies.

The Global Sumud Flotilla, made up of more than 50 boats that departed in recent weeks from Marseille, Barcelona and Syracuse, said in a statement posted overnight on X that Israeli forces had approached the convoy near the eastern Mediterranean as it sailed toward Gaza.

“Israeli military boats have illegally surrounded the flotilla in international waters and threatened kidnapping and violence,” the group said, adding that communications had been lost with 11 vessels.

According to the organization’s live tracking system, the flotilla was positioned off the coast of Greece near Crete when the incident occurred.

The group said military speedboats identifying themselves as Israeli forces approached the vessels, pointed lasers and semi-automatic weapons at passengers, and ordered participants to move to the front of the boats and kneel.

“Our boats were approached by military speedboats, self-identified as ‘Israel’, pointing lasers and semi-automatic assault weapons,” the organization said, adding that communications were being jammed and that a distress signal had been issued.Reuters could not independently verify the claims, and there was no immediate public comment from Israeli authorities.

The flotilla is part of a continuing effort by international activists to challenge Israel’s blockade of Gaza, which has been in place since 2007 after Hamas took control of the enclave.

Organizers say the mission is intended to deliver solidarity and draw attention to humanitarian conditions in Gaza, while Israel has previously said such flotillas violate security restrictions designed to prevent weapons and materials from reaching Hamas.

In late 2025, a previous flotilla involving around 50 boats and several high-profile activists, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, was intercepted by the Israeli navy.The organizers and Amnesty International said that boarding operation violated international law, while Israel detained and later deported those involved.

Israel and Hamas have accused each other of breaching a ceasefire that took effect on Oct. 10, 2025, after nearly two years of war, while aid access and maritime restrictions around Gaza remain major points of dispute.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), which monitors shipping security in the region, said the cargo vessel reported being fired upon and subsequently halted in the water.

No injuries or environmental damage were reported, and the ship sustained no apparent damage.The UKMTO did not identify who carried out the second attack. However, the incident followed an earlier episode in which Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was reported to have opened fire on a container ship, prompting immediate suspicion toward Tehran.

The incidents come amid heightened tensions in the Gulf, days after U.S. forces seized an Iranian container vessel following an exchange of fire and boarded an oil tanker linked to Iran’s oil trade in the Indian Ocean.

The Strait of Hormuz is a critical global transit route for energy supplies, and any disruption to shipping there is closely monitored by governments and markets worldwide.

Iranian authorities did not immediately comment on the reported attacks.

In a post on social media, Trump said U.S. naval forces would block “any and all ships” attempting to enter or leave the waterway, which carries roughly 20% of global oil supplies and is central to international energy markets.

He added that the Navy had been instructed to “seek and interdict every vessel in international waters” that had paid a toll to Iran, describing such payments as illegal and warning that affected ships would not be granted safe passage.

The announcement came shortly after U.S. officials ended negotiations with Iran in Pakistan without reaching an agreement, prompting Washington to escalate efforts to curtail Tehran’s economic leverage derived from control over the strategic shipping lane.

Trump said Iran’s nuclear ambitions remained a key obstacle to resolving the conflict and signaled readiness for further military action. “At an appropriate moment, we are fully ‘locked and loaded,’” he wrote, adding that U.S. forces would “finish” the remaining aspects of the war.

The Strait of Hormuz is a critical chokepoint for global energy supplies, and any disruption to shipping through the narrow passage has the potential to impact oil prices and international trade flows.

No immediate response from Iranian authorities was reported.

The survivors, who said their vessel had initially carried 105 people, were found clinging to the wreckage of an overturned boat before being taken aboard nearby ships, according to Mediterranea Saving Humans and Sea-Watch. The bodies and survivors were later transferred to an Italian coast guard patrol boat and brought to the island of Lampedusa.

Italy’s interior ministry declined to comment on the incident, while the Italian Coast Guard did not immediately respond to requests for confirmation. The rescue took place during Easter, a major holiday in Italy.

Footage released by Sea-Watch showed migrants struggling in open waters, with several individuals holding onto the partially submerged orange hull as rescuers approached.

The central Mediterranean route, one of the world’s deadliest migration corridors, has been further complicated this year by adverse weather conditions. Rough seas have reduced the number of departures from North Africa but increased the risks for those attempting the journey.

The International Organization for Migration estimates that at least 683 people have died along the central Mediterranean route so far this year, marking one of the highest death tolls recorded since 2014.