U.S. labor activist Chris Smalls has been released from jail after being abducted by Israeli forces.
On Monday, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition revealed that Smalls had been assaulted by seven uniformed Israeli soldiers.
In an Instagram post, the group said Smalls was choked and kicked in the legs.
“When his lawyer met with him, Chris was surrounded by six members of Israel’s special police unit,” reads the post. “This level of force was not used against other abducted activists. We condemn this violence against Chris and demand accountability for the assault and discriminatory treatment he faced.”
Smalls was one of 21 activists detained after soldiers boarded the Handala, a ship that was attempting to deliver much-needed supplies to the people of Gaza.
Smalls was released alongside Tunisian activist Hatem Aouini, the final two abductees that were still being held by Israel. Both had been on a hunger strike to protest their treatment.
Aouini was received by the Tunisian embassy at the border, but no U.S. officials met Smalls despite repeated attempts to contact the government.
“With their release, all 21 volunteers abducted from the Handala in international waters have now been released from Israeli captivity,” said the Freedom Flotilla Coalition in a statement. “But over 10,300 Palestinian political prisoners remain caged in Israeli occupation prisons, at least 320 of them children, held in violation of international law and subjected to horrific forms of abuse and torture.”
“The Freedom Flotilla’s mission to break the blockade on Gaza rests firmly on international law and the right to resist occupation,” it continued. “While Israel continues to starve Palestinians and detain them en masse, we affirm our commitment to freedom, dignity, and justice for all. We will not stop until we break the siege and Palestine is free.”
Prior to the raid, Palestinian American human rights attorney Huwaida Arraf spoke to Democracy Now about the mission.
“We expect our politicians to speak up. But, sadly, we know that the administration, the U.S. Congress, they are not listening to the American people,” said Arraf. “Poll after poll is showing that the American people do not support funding this genocide, and yet our government continues to vote to send more money to starve and maim and behead children — of course, more than children, and civilians, but the children are the most severely impacted from the bombing, the maiming and from the — from this deliberate starvation, from this engineered famine. The children, the infants are the first to — their bodies can’t take it.”
“And so, this is why we have called our vessel — it’s called the Handala, which is a 10-year-old Palestinian child, a cartoon of a 10-year-old Palestinian child, but also filled the boat with things for children, not only food, but baby formula and diapers and stuffed animals that were donated from children in Italy to children in Gaza, in a message of solidarity, love and hope,” she continued. “Of course, it doesn’t come close to meeting the needs, but our message is that the siege, this illegal blockade must be broken.”
Smalls is well-known for leading an Amazon union drive in Staten Island in 2022.
The Amazon Labor Union condemned the detention of Smalls in a post on social media and expressed solidarity with Gaza.
“We honor the call from Palestinian labor unions to disrupt the arms trade and support global workers’ actions such as strikes, direct protests, and other efforts,” reads the statement.
What an embarrassment that the US Embassy in Israel refused to assist Chris Smalls. Shameful is a word that comes to mind.
Of course, the other shameful act is the ongoing cover-up of the American citizens that Israel continues to murder without any consequences. I thought the US Embassies around the world were there to protect and aid US citizens.