Ex-Senator Mushtaq returns to the country after being freed from Israeli detention

ISLAMABAD: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leader and former Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan arrived in Pakistan on Thursday after being released from Israeli detention.

He had been a part of the Global Sumud Flotilla, which came under attack by Israeli forces while en route to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.

He received a warm and enthusiastic welcome at the airport, where hundreds of pro-Palestinian supporters, including JI workers and civil society activists, gathered to show solidarity. The activists waved Palestinian flags and chanted slogans in support of Gaza.

Senator Mushtaq’s participation in the humanitarian flotilla was part of an international civil society effort to break the Israeli blockade on Gaza and deliver aid to the besieged population.

Read More: Mushtaq Ahmed says GSF activists faced worst torture by Israeli forces

Earlier, Mushtaq Ahmad Khan released his first video message after being freed from Israeli detention.

In the message posted on his official Facebook page, Mushtaq Ahmed said he and some 150 colleagues have reached Jordan after their release.

He said they were held for five days in the notorious Ketziot detention facility before being freed.

Describing the conditions of detention, the former lawmaker said prisoners were handcuffed behind their backs, shackled at the feet, blindfolded and attacked with dogs.

He alleged that detainees were subjected to severe mistreatment and torture.

He added that the group staged a three-day hunger strike to press their demands and that they were routinely denied access to food, water, medicines and other essentials.