ISLAMABAD: A former Pakistani senator detained by Israel after joining an aid flotilla bound for Gaza on Thursday likened the prison where he was held to a “concentration camp,” saying thousands of Palestinians, including children under ten, were imprisoned there.
Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, who was among activists aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla seized by Israeli naval forces this month, returned to Pakistan earlier in the day after his release.
The flotilla, carrying medical supplies and food, was one of several international efforts to deliver humanitarian assistance to Gaza, where shortages of food and medicine have worsened after nearly two years of Israeli bombardment and months of aid restrictions.
“We [were held] in the Negev desert, Ktzi’ot jail, which is a concentration camp [where] 10,000 Palestinians, innocent, civilian, non-combatant Palestinians, are in the Israeli jail, with hundreds of children below 10 years,” Khan told Arab News after his arrival in Islamabad.
He said Israel was running a “terrorist regime” involved in war crimes, adding that the global community must hold it accountable for crimes against humanity.
Khan, who received a warm welcome at Islamabad International Airport, said his detention had only strengthened his resolve to continue supporting the Palestinian cause.
“I feel that I have got more energy and I will, by the will of God, carry on this struggle,” he continued. “We will organize Pakistan-Palestine committees throughout the country and prepare another, even larger flotilla.”
The Pakistani politician also maintained that the recent ceasefire in Gaza was a result of global pressure built by activists who came up with initiatives like the flotilla movement.
“The public pressure, the global public pressure has forced Israel and its Western backers to sit with Hamas for talks and agree on a ceasefire,” he told Arab News.
The Global Sumud Flotilla included activists, parliamentarians and lawyers from several countries, including the high-profile Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg.
Rights groups condemned Israel’s interception of the aid convoy and the detention of passengers, calling for their immediate release and renewed access for humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry said earlier it had coordinated Khan’s return with its international allies, thanking “brotherly countries” for facilitating his safe passage.
At the airport, several supporters expressed admiration for Khan’s stance and called for continued support for Palestinians.
Umm-e-Rehman, a student who came to welcome him, praised his courage and said Gaza’s people needed more than words of solidarity.
“He did something that we should all be able to do,” she said, adding the people in Gaza needed “aid, hospitals and their free land.”
Another supporter, Dr. Shehnaz, who did not give her full name, welcomed news of the ceasefire.
“The good news we received this morning is that the war between Hamas and Israel has ended,” she said. “We pray for Palestine.”
