The six South Africans who were captured by Israel while part of the Global Sumud Flotilla last week are set to return home on Tuesday
The six South Africans who were captured by Israel while part of the Global Sumud Flotilla last week are set to return home on Tuesday, the department of international relations and cooperation says.
“We have received confirmation that the individuals in question are scheduled to be released from detention and will be repatriated, departing via Jordan tomorrow morning,” the department said in a statement.
Nelson Mandela’s grandson Mandla Mandela, Fatima Hendricks, Zaheera Soomar, Zukiswa Wanner, Reaaz Moola and Carrie Shelver were detained by Israeli authorities last week.
The Global Sumud Flotilla, the largest civilian maritime mission to Gaza, brought together more than 50 ships and delegations from at least 44 countries, including Spain, Italy, Egypt and Malaysia. The convoy, which was carrying humanitarian aid, including food, medical supplies and baby formula, left at the end of August.
Israeli authorities, who intercepted the flotilla on 1 and 2 October in international waters, have accused the activists of entering the country illegally, Lubna Tuma, a lawyer from the Adalah Legal Centre said on Instagram Live on Monday.
She said Israeli authorities were withholding information from the lawyers who are representing activists from the Global Sumud Flotilla.
Around 160 people have been deported and about 170 are expected to be deported between Monday and Tuesday, but these figures remain unconfirmed, Tuma said.
“The [accusation] is that the activists entered Israel illegally — unlawfully — and that they tried to break the siege on Gaza. What we argue, as the lawyers, is that, first of all, you don’t have any authority to intercept [them] in international waters, and the law of entry to Israel can’t apply.
“The activists were forced to enter Israel. They didn’t want to enter Israel.”
Tuma said Israel was not allowing the detained activists any legal representation or counsel, which further infringed on their rights, and on their power as lawyers.
“They started the hearings without our presence and that means that many activists got into the administrative hearing without legal counsel. Even in the prison, when the activists moved to the Israel Prison Service, also they withheld information.
“Even until this moment, after the verdict of the tribunal that all of the activists will be deported … we have the right as lawyers to know the time of the deportation, which flight, the ticket reservation, even that they withhold the information,” she said.
Concerns were also raised about the conditions under which the activists were being held.
“The prison where the activists are being held is notorious for its inhumane treatment of Palestinians,” the Global Sumud Flotilla said on Monday.
“We remain deeply concerned by the reports that delegates have been subjected to mistreatment including initial denial of food and water; denial of chronic and other medication; physical mistreatment and abuse by Israeli soldiers and prison guards and denial of proper food, some of which was infested with insects.”
Tuma said they had received reports of some detainees being handcuffed and forced to kneel in the sun, and other humiliating treatment, and of them being hit by Israeli authorities.
She added that some activists were on a hunger strike in solidarity with the Palestinians who are being denied access to food and medication — and being starved by the Israeli regime.
“The activists that are on hunger strike stated that they prefer, or rather, that their food goes to the people in Gaza. Some are also on water strike until medical treatment is given to all the detainees, to all the activists.”
The Global Sumud Flotilla said South Africa must also lobby for the release of the other activists who are being held “unjustly” in international waters.
“The South African government must hold Israel accountable for what they have done to our activists — kidnapping them in international waters — in violation of international and maritime law.
“Their arrest and imprisonment must be the final red line.”