On his second attempt to deliver humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza and break the genocidal Israeli/US/European Union blockade of Gaza, Mouheb Snoussi was detained by Israeli forces and subjected to intense torture. He spoke to Meshkal about the torture on the sidelines of a protest in Tunis on June 19, marking 100 days since four of his fellow aid activists have been detained without trial by Tunisian authorities.
“From the very first half hour, all participants were subjected to severe violence,” Snoussi said, claiming that his ribs were broken after Israeli forces boarded their ship, abducted them in international waters, and put them on a military vessel that functioned as a “floating detention vessel” after an interception lasting more than 30 hours.
Snoussi described Israel’s interception and subsequent detention of the humanitarian aid activists as one of the most difficult experiences of his life. He recalled spending two nights aboard the vessel and said the conditions became so difficult that reaching prison seemed like a relief.
“I found myself waiting for the moment we would arrive at prison simply so I could rest,” he said.
Reflecting on the experience, Snoussi said the suffering endured by flotilla participants gave them only a limited understanding of the realities faced daily by Palestinian prisoners.
“We lived through four days of what felt like hell. At certain moments, death seemed preferable to the pain we were experiencing in our bodies” he said. “That reality gave us only a glimpse of what Palestinian prisoners endure every day.”
The activist explained that he had initially been reluctant to speak publicly about his experiences during the first flotilla mission, believing he had simply fulfilled his humanitarian and political duty. This time, however, he felt compelled to share his testimony because of what he viewed as insufficient media coverage.
“Today, I have chosen to speak out to shed light on the suffering of Palestinian prisoners, whose numbers exceed 9,500, including around 350 children and 50 women. Unfortunately, the Palestinian cause is no longer receiving the same level of public attention,” he said. “Even media coverage of this mission has fallen far short of reflecting the reality of what took place.”
Protesters Mark 100 Days of Detention for Gaza Aid Organizers
Snoussi spoke to Meshkal about this experience during a June 19 protest in Tunis in solidarity with his fellow Gaza aid activists who have been detained without trial for over 100 days by Tunisian authorities. He joined dozens of other activists, lawyers, friends, and family members of the Gaza Aid flotilla activists at Martyr Chokri Belaïd Square, commonly known as Human Rights Square, where they condemned the continued detention of four organizers in Mornaguia prison: Wael Naouar, Ghassen Henchiri, Ghassen Boughdiri and Nabil Chenoufi. The detained have now spent more than 100 days detained without trial.
In June 2025, the Joint Action for Palestine Coordination Committee in Tunisia, a group that became the Tunisian-branch of the international Gaza Sumud Flotilla coalition, launched an overland aid convoy from Tunis to try and break the genocidal Israeli/US/European Union blockade on Gaza. In September 2025, the same group of organizers helped coordinate a sea flotilla of aid to break the blockade.
On March 6, 2026, Tunisian authorities began arresting several members of the group. The Tunisia Flotilla committee stated that the arrests occurred amid a series of escalating restrictions targeting Global Sumud Flotilla activists and pro-Palestinian advocacy in Tunisia. These measures started when authorities rejected a request by the committee to use the port of Sidi Bou Said for the launch of a second flotilla this year.
This was followed by police forces forcibly preventing the activists from accessing the port on Wednesday, March 4 during a planned tribute event to thank the port workers for their previous help in sending off the aid flotilla. Later, the governor of Tunis banned a cultural gathering and press conference about Palestine that was scheduled to be held at the Rio theater. The committee at the time condemned what it described as unlawful arrests and ongoing repression, calling for the immediate release of all detained activists.
“I am here today to stand in solidarity with my comrades, my brothers and the people I was imprisoned with in occupation prisons during the first mission. It is only natural for me to take part in this gathering, especially in the presence of their families, as we consider ourselves part of their extended family,” Snoussi told Meshkal.
Standing alongside the relatives of the detainees, Snoussi emphasized the deep personal bonds forged through months of preparation, sailing, detention, and activism.
“Beyond comradeship, we share a strong human bond because of everything we lived through and endured together during that period,” he said.
While expressing solidarity with the detained activists, Snoussi also used the gathering to criticize what he described as a growing contradiction between official discourse on Palestine and the treatment of pro-Palestinian activists in Tunisia. Arguing that the continued detention of flotilla participants undermines long-standing political commitments to the Palestinian cause, he called for their immediate release and vowed to continue mobilizing in their support.
“This is a state that has lost its reason and its political and moral compass. It has become clear that the slogan ‘Normalization is High Treason‘ was nothing more than an electoral slogan. We hope the authorities will reconsider their position. If they do not, we remain present and ready to continue the struggle by all legitimate means to secure the release of our comrades and to support the Palestinian cause. We will continue participating in boycott campaigns, efforts to criminalize normalization, and exposing the political direction that the authorities have pursued under American pressure,” Snoussi said.
Lawyers Give Updates
Providing an update on the legal status of the detained flotilla activists, lawyer Ghassen Ghribi said that several activists have already been questioned by the investigating judge, while others continue to await hearings.
Ghribi explained that an investigating judge has questioned Jawaher Channa, Sanaa Mhiedli, Mohamed Amine Bennour, Wael Naouar, and Ghassen Henchiri while Nabil Chanoufi and Boughdiri have yet to be questioned. Channa, Mhiedli, and Bennour were all released by a judge, but, according to Ghribi, they remain subject to restrictive precautionary measures, including limitations on appearing in public spaces, using social media, and leaving their places of residence. He noted that these restrictions have had serious consequences on their livelihoods.
“Jawaher [Channa] and Mohamed Amine [Bennour] both work in the public sector,” he said. “We submitted requests seeking modifications to these restrictions so they can return to work.” The requests have yet to be reviewed, despite concerns that the prolonged restrictions could eventually result in the loss of their jobs.
The lawyer also drew attention to the economic difficulties facing the families of those affected by the case.
“We are speaking today about families who have been left without income,” he said, citing the case of Jawaher Channa, whose husband, Naouar, remains imprisoned, leaving the household without a source of financial support.
Meanwhile, the legal proceedings concerning Ghassen Boughdiri and Nabil Channoufi have yet to begin. Neither has been questioned or formally heard, and both continue to wait for a hearing date. According to Ghribi, delays are linked to the investigating judge’s heavy workload.
Despite the setbacks, the defense team plans to continue pursuing the activists’ release.
“We are now awaiting the first hearing session, during which we will submit requests for their release and defend them just as we have defended their fellow activists,” he said.
Reflecting on the length of the detention, Ghribi stressed the toll it has taken on those imprisoned. “More than 100 days have passed, which is an extremely long period. Imprisonment is not easy, and it takes a heavy toll,” he said.
Yet, despite the prolonged detention, he emphasized that the detainees remain resilient. “The positive aspect, however, is that their morale remains high, their determination is strong, and they continue to follow current events from behind prison walls.”
Resistance Music as a Form of Protest
Beyond legal updates and calls for the activists’ release, the June 19 gathering also highlighted the role of culture in sustaining political struggles, offering a space for collective expression and allowing participants to share their solidarity through music, writing, and public testimony.
Participants were invited to leave messages of support on a free-expression board, where friends and supporters wrote notes addressed to the detainees. Others took part in a letter-writing initiative, composing personal messages that will be delivered to those in prison.
Musician Najem Ben Youssef performed on the oud [lute], accompanied by Omar Ben Ibrahim, who sang resistance and solidarity songs dedicated to Palestine and the detained activists. For Ben Ibrahim, lead singer of the Tunisian band Ankhab, music is not separate from activism but one of its many expressions. “Resistance music is a form of beautiful protest,” he said. “Some people know how to give speeches, others know how to demonstrate. We know how to sing.”
According to the artist, music has the power to transform political convictions into a collective emotional experience.
“We translate our principles into music, colors, and poetry to inspire people and strengthen their determination to continue the struggle,” he explained.
Speaking at the gathering, Ben Ibrahim linked the event to the first Sumud Flotilla mission, which drew widespread public support and international attention to Tunisia. One year later, however, he expressed concern about those still behind bars.
“If they have committed a crime and there are clear charges against them, then they should be tried. Otherwise, they should be released and allowed to return to their families and their lives,” he said.
The singer also defended the right to political engagement and dissent.
“Activism is a legitimate right. You cannot punish people for their convictions and positions,” he stated, arguing that the continued detention of the activists raises broader questions about public and individual freedoms.
As resistance songs echoed across Martyr Chokri Belaid Square, Ben Ibrahim’s message underscored the connection between culture, solidarity, and political action. “Palestine needs us now more than ever,” he said, as attendees joined in singing and reaffirmed their support for both the detainees and the Palestinian cause.
A Mission Overshadowed by Violence and Media Silence
During the gathering, Snoussi also reflected on his experience aboard the second Global Sumud Flotilla mission, describing a journey that he said was both politically and physically more difficult than the first.
The absence of many of his fellow activists was felt even before the flotilla set sail. With several participants already facing arrests and legal proceedings, Snoussi said he took precautionary measures to ensure he would be able to join the second mission.
“I left Tunisia to South Africa and then to Turkey to avoid any possibility of being prevented from joining the second flotilla [in April 2026], especially since my comrades were arrested around the same period that the departure date of the second Global Sumud Flotilla was announced.”
Unlike the first mission, which spent nearly three weeks at sea, the second flotilla lasted only four days before being intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters between Cyprus and Egypt, approximately 220 nautical miles from Gaza, according to Snoussi.
Snoussi said the second mission unfolded in a markedly different context from the first, particularly in terms of public engagement and media coverage. According to him, the flotilla did not benefit from the same wave of popular support that had accompanied the previous mission.
“There was a noticeable lack of media attention this time,” he said. “We did not witness the same level of popular momentum that existed in Tunisia during the first mission and that gave strength and wings to the flotilla vessels.”
He recalled that during the first mission, tens of thousands of Tunisians and supporters of the Palestinian cause mobilized in support of the initiative. “This time, we departed without that same level of public backing and encouragement,” he added.
Snoussi argued that the political and media environment had become significantly more challenging. “Politically and media-wise, this mission was more difficult,” he said. “The world today seems willing to listen only to the sounds of wars, bombs, and military fleets, not humanitarian flotillas.”
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