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Middle East

Says Washington and Islamabad are developing what he described as a “true friendship,” pointing to the roles of Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in facilitating peace negotiations.

Hegseth credits Pakistan PM, field marshal for ‘true friendship’ with US

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Americas

Rubio denounces NATO refusal to help on Iran ahead of alliance talks; Iran condemns treatment of Gaza flotilla activists at Ashdod Port; Italy requests EU sanctions on Israeli minister over treatment of activists.







Middle East roundup: Iranian ambassador praises Pakistan’s role in securing release of 20 Iranian sailors

JERUSALEM:&nbsp;Two activists who participated in a Gaza-bound aid flotilla have been brought to Israel for questioning, the foreign ministry said on Saturday, after the vessels were intercepted by Israeli forces this week. Saif Abu Keshek, from Spain, and Thiago Avila, a Brazilian, were in Israel and would &quot;be transferred for questioning by law enforcement authorities&quot;, the ministry said on X, adding that the two activists were affiliated with an organization sanctioned by the US Treasury. The ministry said the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-confirms-mushtaq-khan-released-after-israeli-flotilla-detention" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">activists</a>&nbsp;were affiliated with the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad (PCPA), a group Washington has accused of &quot;clandestinely acting on behalf of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/activists-on-gaza-aid-flotilla-detained-by-israel-disembark-in-crete" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hamas</a>&quot;. In January, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on the group, which it said was involved in organizing&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-joins-10-nations-condemning-israels-global-sumud-flotilla-raid" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Gaza-bound</a>&nbsp;civilian flotillas that aimed to break Israel&#39;s sea blockade on the Palestinian territory.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2050505417017430517&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=aabe11c3c180d2fd0d3d3f60a9ef538e6af226cf&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 345px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>Israel&#39;s foreign ministry said Abu Keshek was a leading member of PCPA and Avila, also linked to the organization, was &quot;suspected of illegal activity&quot;. &quot;Both will receive a consular visit from the representatives of their respective countries in Israel,&quot; the ministry said. Avila was among the organizers of a flotilla that had tried to bring aid to Gaza last year despite the naval blockade. That effort was also intercepted by Israeli forces. The current flotilla comprised more than 50 vessels and had set sail from ports in France, Spain and Italy with the aim of breaking the blockade of Gaza and bringing humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory. Israel controls all entry points to Gaza. Throughout the war there have been shortages of critical supplies in Gaza, with Israel at points cutting off the entry of aid entirely. The Gaza Strip has been under Israeli blockade since 2007. Israel&#39;s foreign ministry earlier said around 175 activists had been taken off more than 20 vessels on Thursday by its country&#39;s military.&nbsp; Spain calls Israel&#39;s detention of citizen from Gaza flotilla &#39;illegal&#39; Spain&#39;s foreign minister on Saturday condemned the &quot;illegal detention&quot; of a Spanish activist who was taken to Israel after being seized in an Israeli military operation against a Gaza aid flotilla in international waters. Saif Abu Keshek, who was taken to Israel along with a Brazilian activist, &quot;must be released immediately so that he can return to Spain&quot;, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told Rac1 radio. Over 200 activists &#39;kidnapped&#39; Flotilla organizers said 211 activists had been &quot;kidnapped&quot;. Organizers said the Israeli operation had taken place over 1,000 kilometers from the Gaza Strip. Israeli forces halted the boats overnight Wednesday to Thursday, with organizers the Global Sumud Flotilla saying their equipment had been smashed and that the intervention had left them facing a &quot;calculated death trap at sea&quot;. Dozens of intercepted activists disembarked on Friday on the Greek island of Crete, according to an AFP journalist. The United States has backed Israeli authorities, calling the flotilla a &quot;stunt&quot;. In the summer and autumn of 2025, a first voyage by the Global Sumud Flotilla across the Mediterranean towards Gaza drew worldwide attention. The boats in that flotilla were intercepted by Israel off the coasts of Egypt and the Gaza Strip in early October. Crew members, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, were arrested and then expelled by Israel.

The ministry says the activists are affiliated with the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad (PCPA), a group Washington has accused of 'clandestinely acting on behalf of Hamas'.

Articles tagged with "Gaza Aid Flotilla"

Hegseth credits Pakistan PM, field marshal for ‘true friendship’ with US

Middle East roundup: Iranian ambassador praises Pakistan’s role in securing release of 20 Iranian sailors

Two Gaza aid flotilla activists brought to Israel for questioning: Foreign ministry

Hegseth credits Pakistan PM, field marshal for ‘true friendship’ with US