Israeli court extends detention of two Gaza flotilla activists

Israeli court extends detention of two Gaza flotilla activists6 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleDavid GrittenAFPThiago Ávila was escorted by security personnel to Tuesday's hearing in the Israeli city of AshkelonAn Israeli court has extended the detention of two pro-Palestinian activists taken from a flotilla carrying aid for Gaza last Thursday, according to a rights group representing them.Adalah said the court in Ashkelon gave police an additional six days to question Spanish national Saif Abu Keshek and Brazilian national Thiago Ávila.They were among about 175 activists detained when Israeli forces intercepted 22 boats in international waters near Greece. The others were later released on the island of Crete.Israel has said Abu Keshek is suspected of affiliation with a terrorist group and Ávila of illegal activity. Spain and Brazil have said their detention is illegal and demanded their release.'If we sleep, they bite': Rats and weasels infest camps for displaced GazansIsrael releases all but two activists in Greece after intercepting Gaza aid flotillaIsrael intercepts Gaza flotilla near Crete and detains 175 activistsBoth men have been on hunger strike for the past six days, according to Adalah.A lawyer with the group who represented the pair at Tuesday's hearing, Hadeel Abu Salih, told reporters: "We made it clear before the court today that, first of all, we are talking about an illegal detention that must end now.""We are talking about two foreign nationals that were arrested in international waters approximately a thousand kilometres from Gaza and brought into Israel against their will."Abu Salih said she had also told the court that their detention conditions "amount to psychological torture"."Both Thiago and Saif are both kept in isolation since they were moved to the custody of the Israeli prison services, and are blindfolded each time they are taken out of the cell, even when they go th...