Six Australians detained by the Israeli military while attempting to transport aid to Gaza have been released after days at sea.
The activists were among more than 100 people detained while participating in the second Global Sumud Flotilla, the latest iteration of many attempts by activist groups to break a long-running Israeli naval blockade of the enclave.
The flotilla participants were released on Crete after being intercepted off the coast of the Greek island by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Wednesday.
Flotilla organisers said three Australians — Ethan Floyd, Zack Schofield and Neve O'Connor — were taken to hospital for injuries after being released.
The three Australians say they were subjected to violence and mistreated while on board the Israeli vessel.
"We three are all physically okay as you can be after that experience," the trio said in a video message from Sitia hospital in Crete.
Organisers said all 173 international activists were released except for two leaders of the flotilla: Thiago Ávila from Brazil and Saif Abu Keshek from Spain.
Floyd, Schofield and O'Connor said that they had refused food from Israeli authorities while detained and pledged to continue a hunger strike until the health and whereabouts of Thiago Ávila and Saif Abu Keshek were known.
However, a spokesperson from the Global Sumud Flotilla later told SBS News that the trio had been too physically weakened by their time in captivity to continue the hunger strike.
Israel denies abuse of detained activists
Images and videos posted by the Global Sumud Flotilla on X appear to show wounds inflicted on the activists, including bruising and gashes — and one released participant said that they were "beaten several times with our hands tied in our backs".
"We tried a non-violent resistance to stop them from keeping Thiago and Saif, and that's why they beat us up before taking us on the boat," the unidentified activist said.
Israeli foreign affairs minister Gideon Sa'ar confirmed the vessels had been intercepted but insisted participants were unharmed.
"All participants in the provocative flotilla who were taken off the vessels were taken off unharmed," he said on X.
The vessels were seized in international waters off Greece's Peloponnese peninsula, hundreds of kilometres from Gaza, organisers said.
Organisers claim the IDF's actions were unlawful as they occurred in international waters far from Gaza.
"This is piracy," the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement.
"This is the unlawful seizure of human beings on the open sea near Crete, an assertion that Israel can operate with total impunity, far beyond its own borders, with no consequences."
Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Oren Marmorstein said this week that "early action" was both necessary and legal under international law due to "the large numbers of vessels participating in the flotilla and the risk of escalation, and the need to prevent the breach of a lawful blockade".
The ministry later confirmed that the two remaining detainees had been brought to Israel for questioning.
"Saif Abu Keshek, suspected of affiliation with a terrorist organisation and Thiago Ávila suspected of illegal activity, will be brought to Israel for questioning," it said on X.
"We demand that all governments do all they can to pressure the Israeli regime to release all the illegal abductees," the Global Sumud Flotilla said.
Surya McEwen, Cameron Tribe and Bianca Webb-Pullman round out the six Australian detainees, among around 17 known to have been participating in the flotilla.
Seven Australians were detained by the IDF during the previous Sumud flotilla in October.
Israel controls access to the Gaza Strip and denies withholding supplies for its two million residents, with Israel's main aid coordination agency regularly pointing to increased access via authorised pathways into the enclave since last October's ceasefire.
However, numerous Palestinian and international aid bodies — including Doctors Without Borders and the Red Crescent Society — say humanitarian supplies to the territory remain insufficient.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, which has been contacted, has previously urged Australians not to participate in breaches of Israel's blockade.
Sydneysiders are set to paddle across Sydney Harbour on Sunday to show support for the flotilla.
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