Four British flotilla activists detained by Israel return home
James Hickey, Malcolm Ducker, Hannah Sharpey-Schafer and Sid Khan have arrived at London’s Heathrow airport from Amman, Jordan.
On arrival, their passports were confiscated and they were detained by border police. Hickey and Khan were released shortly afterwards, while Ducker and Sharpey-Schafer were only able to leave the airport two hours later. “We were abused and detained on arrival in the UK,” Hickey said.
Khan, reading from a joint statement, described the Global Sumud flotilla as a peaceful initiative to challenge Israel’s blockade of Gaza. He said detainees were left handcuffed in the sun for hours, deprived of medicines, subjected to strip searches, and kept in overcrowded cells.
He said consular support was minimal for the British nationals, compared to that provided by other European governments, which arranged swift repatriations for their citizens.
Vigils held across UK in solidarity with Gaza
Campaigners in the UK have renewed calls to end Israel’s assault on the enclave and to halt arms sales to Israel.
Gatherings took place outside Cardiff Central Station, opposite the Prime Minister’s Office in London, outside the Whitworth Building on Oxford Road in Manchester, at Grey’s Monument in Newcastle, and at Queen Elizabeth House in Edinburgh.
The events were organised by the Palestinian Forum in Britain (PFB), an independent group representing the Palestinian community in the UK and advocating for Palestinian rights. The organisation said the vigils were held to honour the thousands killed in Gaza and to stand in unity against the ongoing genocide.
The PFB has also called for a National March for Palestine in London on October 11, urging people nationwide to join.
