Upon his arrival in Barcelona, Abukeshek affirms he will rejoin the Flotilla in Turkey

Eduardo González The Spanish-Palestinian activist Saif Abukeshek, detained during the latest raid on the Global Sumud Flotilla and released this Saturday by Israeli authorities after several days in jail without charge, arrived this Sunday in Barcelona, where he announced his intention to rejoin the Flotilla in Turkey and denied the terrorism accusations leveled by Israel: “Every day they told me they had proof, that they were certain, and in the end they closed the investigation without bringing me before a judge.” Saif Abukeshek was part of a flotilla comprised of between 70 and 80 vessels with 300 people on board, about 50 of them Spanish, which was intercepted by Israeli forces on April 29 while en route to Gaza with humanitarian aid. The raid took place west of the island of Crete, in international waters, and more than 600 nautical miles from the Israeli coast. On the afternoon of April 30, the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Israeli authorities announced that the members of the Flotilla would be disembarked on the island of Crete. Most of the Spanish members arrived at the airport on May 1, where they were met by the consul. However, Israeli authorities decided to transfer two members of the Flotilla, Saif Abukeshek and the Brazilian Thiago Ávila, to their country. Ávila will also be released. Finally, on Saturday, Israeli authorities informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the Spanish consul in Tel Aviv, of the release of Saif Abukeshek, as reported by Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares in an audio statement. The two activists were never formally charged and remained imprisoned without charge at the request of the intelligence services to investigate their role in the Flotilla. Israel accused them, without providing evidence, of five serious crimes: aiding the enemy in times of war, membership in a terrorist organization, aiding a terrorist organization, transferring assets to a terrorist organization, and contact with a foreign agent. Upon arriving at Barcelona Airport, the activist announced to the media that he would soon be “packing his bags” again to reunite with his “comrades” and denounced the fact that “thousands upon thousands of Palestinian prisoners” remain “defenseless, tortured, and continuously raped.” Regarding the accusations of “suspected affiliation with a terrorist organization” leveled by Israeli authorities, Abukeshek was emphatic: “Every day they told me they had proof, that they were certain, and in the end, they closed the investigation without bringing me before a judge. The terrorists are the genocidal occupying governments.” “What we have seen in our interception is the result of the impunity and complicity of the governments that allow Israel to act as it does,” he declared. Before leaving for Spain, Saif Abukeshek posted a video on Sunday in which he warned that “the treatment I have had to endure is not comparable to the suffering of Palestinian prisoners, including children and women.” “We must continue to mobilize; we cannot forget the Palestinian prisoners,” he added.

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