Adalah’s Legal Representation of the Freedom Flotilla Participants to Break the Siege on Gaza

Following Israel’s unlawful interception of four humanitarian missions – the Global Sumud Flotilla and Omar Al-Mukhtar ship (1–2 October 2025), the Conscience ship, and the Thousands Madleens Flotilla (8 October 2025) – Adalah has represented almost 500 activists detained by Israeli authorities. These flotillas, comprising around 50 vessels in total and carrying over 600 participants from around the world, were part of coordinated efforts to challenge Israel’s illegal blockade on Gaza and to deliver humanitarian aid amid the genocide against Palestinians.

Nearly two decades into Israel’s blockade, and a result of the genocide committed by Israel, Gaza remains under a devastating siege that has crippled every aspect of life. Residents continue to face severe shortages of food, clean water, fuel, and medical supplies, with hospitals on the brink of collapse and scores of people with no shelter. The intercepted flotillas represented a vital attempt to respond to this urgent humanitarian crisis and to challenge the continued isolation and collective punishment imposed on Gaza’s population.

Since their interception, the Israeli authorities have subjected participants to harsh and degrading ill-treatment and severe restrictions on access to legal counsel. Despite Adalah’s advance notice to the Israeli authorities that it would be representing the activists, authorities denied Adalah lawyers access to, and information about, some of the detainees. Despite that, Adalah took legal action to secure detainees’ rights, ensure their safety, and demand their immediate release.  To carry out this work, Adalah expanded its legal team, with volunteer attorneys joining the effort to defend the flotilla activists. The attorneys provided legal consultations to 490 participants and attended emergency detention hearings at Ashdod Port, Ktzi’ot Prison, and the Ashkelon Magistrate’s Court.

Here are the key highlights from Adalah’s legal representation of the Freedom Flotilla participants:

Unlawful Interception and Detention:

Israel intercepted all flotilla vessels in international waters, in violation of international law, and prevented them from reaching Gaza. The Global Sumud Flotilla and the Omar Al-Mukhtar ship, carrying 462 participants, along with the Conscience ship and the Thousands Madleens flotilla, carrying 145 participants, were forcibly seized by the Israeli military. Activists reported being attacked by Israeli forces, drones and helicopters before their ships were seized and towed to Ashdod Port.

Most participants were transferred to Ktzi’ot Prison in the Naqab (Negev), known for its harsh and abusive conditions. Three participants with Israeli citizenship aboard the Conscience were taken for police interrogation and remained in custody there until their release.

Denial of Access to Lawyers and Legal Proceedings

At Ashdod Port, Adalah lawyers met with over 370 participants from the Global Sumud Flotilla and Omar Al-Mukhtar ship, while nearly 90 others were processed without any access to legal counsel, as lawyers were initially barred from entering the Ashdod port. Adalah attorneys also provided legal consultations to approximately 115 of the 145 participants from the Conscience and Thousands Madleens flotillas upon their arrival, again during a period in which legal representatives were denied entry to the port.

Adalah attorneys attended hearings at Ashdod Port and before the Detention Review Tribunal at Ktzi’ot Prison on behalf of 490 detainees. Adalah argued, among other points, that Israel’s blockade on Gaza is illegal; that the interception of the vessels and the detention of the activists were unlawful; and that all activists should be released and allowed to return to their vessels to deliver the humanitarian aid to Gaza.

In many cases, detention and deportation hearings were held without prior notice and in the absence of legal representation. Israeli authorities imposed severe restrictions on Adalah’s access to detainees at Ktzi’ot Prison, permitting only a small number of lawyers to enter for brief visits.

Despite these restrictions, Adalah lawyers continued to attend hearings and visit detainees at Ktzi’ot Prison and the Ashkelon Magistrate’s Court, consistently demanding full access to all participants. Israeli authorities suspended all prison visits and hearings from 5 through 6 October for the Sukkot holiday.

Adalah also represented three participants with Israeli citizenship (including dual nationals) before the Magistrate’s Court in Ashkelon. They were accused of “infiltration into an unauthorized military area,” despite being abducted in international waters approximately 120 nautical miles from Gaza. The police sought to extend their detention by seven days, while the court proposed conditional release, including a six-month ban on entering Gaza and a suspended financial bond of 4,000 NIS (approximately 1,230 USD) each. The three were ultimately released after three court hearings and further easing of restrictions, following their refusal to sign onto onerous conditions of release.

Treatment of Detainees: Violence and Degrading Conditions

Hundreds of participants were held in Ktzi’ot Prison under inhumane and degrading conditions. Some detainees reported being denied food, clean water, and essential medical treatment, including vital medications for life-threatening conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and cancer. Many reported being forced to sleep on the floor in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions. Several activists described being confined in a small room, of about three square meters, with around 15 people together, handcuffed behind their backs for five hours, and without food or water for an extended period.

Testimonies documented by Adalah describe physical assaults, prolonged blindfolding and handcuffing, and humiliation and insults, from the time of their interception in international waters. Widespread violence was reported during the transfers from the port to the prison. Participants reported physical and verbal abuse during and after the interception, including kicking, slapping, hair-pulling, and being forced into painful and degrading positions. Many were forced to kneel with their elbows on the ground, foreheads pressed to the floor, or sit on their knees for hours, sometimes under direct sunlight, without being allowed to move or speak to one another. Others were mocked, insulted, and coerced into making degrading statements, including forced declarations of love for Israel.

The treatment of women was harsher than that of women on board of former vessels that tried to break the siege in June and July this year. There were also clear differences in the treatment of citizens of Arab countries compared to other participants. One woman reported she was forced to remove her hijab, and others faced restrictions on prayer.

Hunger Strike and Health Risks

All 11 Tunisian detainees from the Sumud Flotilla were on hunger strike, joined by others, bringing the total number of striking detainees to around 100. Despite repeated legal interventions by Adalah, adequate medical care was largely denied.

Deportations

The Israel Prison Service (IPS) initiated mass deportations following all flotilla interceptions. Approximately 170 participants from the Global Sumud Flotilla were deported on 4–5 October, followed by an additional 171 participants, including climate activist Greta Thunberg, on 6 October. Some of these individuals were able to meet with lawyers, while others were deported without any legal counsel. Several foreign diplomats were also deported in an expedited manner.

By 12 October 2025, all participants aboard the Conscience and Omar Al-Mukhtar ships and the Global Sumud and Thousands Madleens flotillas had been released and/or deported to their home countries. Adalah followed up with Israeli authorities to confirm the deportations and ensure participants’ rights were upheld.

Contacts with Embassies, Families, and Media

Detainees have also been completely denied telephone contact with family members. Adalah responded to numerous inquiries from family members and international coalitions and maintained close contact with embassies and consulates regarding the situation of the detainees. Adalah has also given interviews to both local and international media and liaised with outlets and organizations to provide information, as many journalists were among the detained participants.

Official Endorsement of Abuse by Israeli Official

During lawyers’ visits to Ashdod Port, where participants of the Global Sumud Flotilla and Omar Al-Mukhtar ship were brought after their vessels were seized, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir appeared in what was clearly intended as an act of humiliation and intimidation. The far-right Ben-Gvir publicly praised the IPS for mistreating and humiliating the flotilla detainees, describing them as “supporters of terrorism” and affirming that they “deserve the conditions of a terrorist.” Adalah condemned these statements as an endorsement of state-sanctioned repression and inhumane treatment.

The flotilla participants were filmed, and exploited in a degrading display of control. This public humiliation occurred alongside an ongoing smear campaign by Israeli officials, who falsely branded flotilla members as “terrorists” in an effort to discredit their peaceful mission and legitimize repressive tactics used against them.

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These incidents represent a significant escalation in the scale of abuse and mistreatment of humanitarian activists compared to the treatment of participants aboard the Madleen and Handala vessels, which attempted to break the illegal siege on Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid earlier this year. The intensified repression reflects the Israeli authorities’ intent to deter future efforts to challenge the blockade or deliver aid to Gaza.

Adalah attorneys have worked around the clock to demand the immediate release of all flotilla participants and full access to legal counsel for all detainees. Their efforts have secured basic rights for activists, protected them from abusive conditions and illegal measures, and ensured to the swift and safe release of all participants.

Adalah continues to challenge illegal measures taken by Israeli authorities against the Freedom Flotilla, including the attempted seizure of the Madleen and Handala ships—part of the Freedom Flotilla coalition that attempted to break the siege in June and July 2025, whose activists were represented by Adalah. State authorities submitted requests to the Haifa District Court, acting as a maritime court, seeking orders to confiscate the vessels and transfer ownership to the state. On 12 October, Adalah submitted responses requesting that the court reject the state’s requests, citing the lack of legal authority to confiscate the ships.

Read more on Adalah’s work representing the activists aboard the Madleen and Handala vessels:

https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/11281

https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/11356