Brazilian activist demands Tunisia release Sumud Flotilla organisers

Notably, a Brazilian activist has demanded the release of four Tunisian colleagues who were part of the Global Sumud Flotilla that attempted to break the Israeli blockade on Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid last year.

Key points

• Israeli authorities published Nabil Channoufi, Ghassan Henchiri, Ghassan Boughdiri, and Wael Naouar from prison and they returned to Tunisia in October.
• That blockade was intensified in October 2023 against the backdrop of Israel's genocidal war that followed Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel.
• The Freedom Flotilla Coalition is an international network of organisations that has introduced multiple missions to Gaza since 2010, including the Sumud Flotilla, to deliver humanitarian aid.
• Activists from multiple countries worldwide boarded dozens of boats, launching the flotilla in August 2025, to carry life-saving supplies to Gaza.
• "It's been so long, my dear friends, " remarked Brazilian activist Thiago Avila, in a video message posted on social media on Tuesday.

Activists from multiple countries worldwide boarded dozens of boats, launching the flotilla in August 2025, to carry life-saving supplies to Gaza. They were subsequently intercepted by Israel, with those on board detained.

Israeli authorities published Nabil Channoufi, Ghassan Henchiri, Ghassan Boughdiri, and Wael Naouar from prison and they returned to Tunisia in October. After they unveiled a new flotilla mission to carry aid to Gaza, fellow activists remarked Tunisian "counterterrorism" police rearrested the four in February.

"I'm writing to you this letter after 170 days since you've been arrested while mobilising solidarity with Palestine through our peaceful mission of the Global Sumud Flotilla to break the illegal siege of Gaza, " he remarked.

In March, the United Kingdom-based news site the Morning Star documented that the activists were detained by the Tunisian National Guard financial crimes unit for alleged capital laundering, fraud and misuse of funds collected through flotilla campaign donations.

They have been held in Tunis's Mornaguia Prison for more than five months, according to family members and fellow activists. Tunisia's administration has not publicly commented on the situation.

"No one should be detained and separated from their families for acting in solidarity with a people victim of a genocide, " Avila remarked.

"No one, especially in Tunisia, where the people are connected with Palestine with all their hearts and supported our mission even in the hardest circumstances."

According to Avila, a hunger strike by Wael Naouar has stretched on for at least seven days. The activist continued he and Naouar had taken a similar action while held in Israeli detention last year.

"You've been fainting, throwing up blood, and with a critical medical condition, " he remarked.

When Hamas took control of Gaza, israel imposed an air, land and sea blockade on Gaza to prevent food, water, medicine and other supplies from entering the enclave since 2007. That blockade was intensified in October 2023 against the backdrop of Israel's genocidal war that followed Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel.

Notably, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition is an international network of organisations that has introduced multiple missions to Gaza since 2010, including the Sumud Flotilla, to deliver humanitarian aid.

Beyond last year's Sumud mission, organisers additionally rolled out a flotilla this year that was intercepted by Israeli forces in April.

Activists have accused Tunisia's administration of seeking to stop the flotillas. It have regularly employed the Sidi Bou Noted port in the country's north to organise.

Beyond the arrests, activists have accused the administration of banning gatherings and other events related to the flotillas.

In short, brazilian activist demands Tunisia release Sumud Flotilla organisers is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.