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Original article: Ciudadanos argentinos confirman grave situación humanitaria de voluntarios del Convoy Global Sumud Magreb detenidos en Libia

As reported by NODAL – Latin American and Caribbean News – we report that on June 4, 2026, after 11 days without official information regarding the situation of Lucas Aguilera and Paula Giménez, Argentine citizens arbitrarily detained in eastern Libya while participating in the Global Sumud Magreb humanitarian convoy bound for Gaza, both managed to establish direct communication with their families from Benghazi, along with other volunteers.

According to their accounts, they remain isolated and cut off from each other, with no contact among the detainees. Furthermore, they reported that the detained volunteers have been on a hunger strike for over 4 days in protest against their deprivation of freedom, isolation, and uncertainty.

Some of them have also initiated a dry hunger strike, abstaining from both food and liquids, significantly increasing the risks to their health, physical integrity, and lives.

According to information relayed to their families, several of the captives have suffered fainting spells, physical deterioration, weight loss, and extreme weakness as a result of the hunger strike.

They also denounced conditions of prolonged isolation, lack of communication, constant uncertainty about their situation, psychological pressure, intensive interrogations, harassment, and other practices that amount to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, which are prohibited by international human rights law and humanitarian law.

Additionally, they stated that they do not have full access to legal assistance or sufficient information regarding their legal status. This is compounded by conditions incompatible with minimum standards of humanitarian treatment, including a lack of adequate personal hygiene facilities.

«Black Site» Conditions

According to information released by Global Sumud, the volunteers remain arbitrarily detained in a facility meant for civilians, managed by the Ministry of Interior, locally referred to as a «black site» or clandestine detention center.

This information severely heightens concerns about the lack of independent oversight, absence of minimum guarantees, and risks to their lives and well-being.

It is particularly alarming that despite the reported physical deterioration, fainting episodes, and ongoing dry hunger strike, authorities have allegedly not allowed independent medical teams or international humanitarian visits. According to the same information, the volunteer doctors from the convoy are attempting to assist and monitor their detained colleagues, even while they themselves are in states of physical and psychological exhaustion.

The circumstances under which they were finally able to communicate with their families suggest that this contact was the result of pressure exerted by the volunteers through their hunger strike, rather than a product of regular protection mechanisms, oversight, or humanitarian access.

While this contact represents significant news for their families and concerned supporters, the received information confirms the existence of an extreme humanitarian and health crisis. There is deep concern over the ongoing conditions of isolation, lack of communication, psychological pressure, intensive interrogations, and manipulation of information regarding their judicial status, all of which severely impact the emotional and mental integrity of the detainees.

According to Global Sumud, the detainees have been informed of a potential judicial appearance, amidst conflicting communications, repeated unfulfilled promises of release, and a lack of clear information regarding their legal status. These elements reinforce the urgent need for immediate access to independent legal assistance, international observation, and urgent humanitarian verification.

Therefore, we urgently demand an immediate and independent international humanitarian visit to verify their detention conditions, assess their health status, and ensure their physical and psychological integrity. We also call for urgent and specialized medical assistance for all volunteers, especially in light of the ongoing effects of the hunger and dry hunger strikes.

Lucas Aguilera and Paula Giménez traveled on May 24 to participate in the Global Sumud Magreb Convoy, an international civil initiative aimed at facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people. After participating in negotiations to ensure the safe passage of humanitarian assistance, both were part of the team responsible for these efforts.

There is no justification for the continued deprivation of liberty of those participating in an international civil and humanitarian mission. Humanitarian assistance is not a crime, and its criminalization is incompatible with the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.

Recent information confirms that we are not only facing a situation of deprivation of liberty and lack of communication but also a humanitarian emergency that requires immediate intervention from international bodies capable of verifying detention conditions and preventing irreversible consequences for the health and physical integrity of those arbitrarily detained.

In light of this situation, we urgently demand:

– An immediate humanitarian visit;
– Urgent and specialized medical assistance for the detained volunteers;
– Access to independent medical teams;
– Official, public, and verifiable information regarding their health status and legal situation;
– Full access to legal assistance;
– Effective guarantees for their physical and psychological integrity;
– The cessation of conditions of isolation, lack of communication, harassment, and intensive interrogations;
– Full consular access for all nationalities involved;
– The immediate release of Lucas Aguilera, Paula Giménez, and all detained volunteers.

We also demand that the Argentine State, the foreign ministries of the countries involved, the United Nations, the International Red Cross, and all relevant organizations intervene immediately and actively to ensure the protection of the detainees and prevent irreversible consequences for their health and integrity.

The protection of Argentine citizens detained abroad is an inalienable obligation of the Argentine State and requires a response commensurate with the severity of the facts known thus far.

Finally, we reiterate our demand to ensure the entry of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people by all possible means and in accordance with international humanitarian law. Medical, food, and humanitarian assistance directed at civilian populations cannot be criminalized or obstructed.

We will continue to publicly inform every confirmed update and take all necessary actions, alongside their families, until Paula Giménez, Lucas Aguilera, and all volunteers regain their freedom and return home.

Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 4, 2026

La entrada Argentine Citizens Confirm Dire Humanitarian Crisis Facing Global Sumud Magreb Volunteers Detained in Libya se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.