Gaza flotilla activists from Spain and Brazil appear in Israeli court

Two foreign activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla who were brought to Israel for interrogation have appeared before an Israeli court, a rights group defending them has said.

The flotilla of more than 50 vessels had set sail from France, Spain and Italy with the aim of breaking an Israeli blockade of Gaza and bringing supplies to the devastated Palestinian territory.

They were intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters off Greece early on Thursday, with Israel saying it had removed 175 activists – two of whom were taken to Israel for questioning.

Saif Abu Keshek, a Spanish national, and Thiago Ávila, from Brazil, appeared in court in Ashkelon on Sunday.

“The state asked to extend their detention by four days,” Miriam Azem, the international advocacy coordinator at the rights group Adalah, told AFP.

Thiago Ávila, who along with Saif Abu Keshek was taken to Israel for interrogation after their flotilla was intercepted near Greece. Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters

On Saturday, Adalah said its lawyers had met the two detained activists at Shikma prison in Ashkelon.

Ávila told the lawyers he had been “subjected to extreme brutality” when the vessels were seized, adding that he was “dragged face-down across the floor and beaten so severely that he passed out twice”.

Since arriving in Israel, he said he had been “kept in isolation and blindfolded”, according to Adalah.

Abu Keshek was “hand-tied and blindfolded … and forced to lie face-down on the floor from the moment of his seizure” until reaching Israel, the group said.

Israel’s foreign ministry said the two activists were affiliated with an organisation that was subject to US Treasury sanctions.

That group – the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad (PCPA) – has been accused by Washington of “clandestinely acting on behalf of” the Palestinian militant group Hamas.