Dhaka, Oct. 9 -- Family members and friends of Bangladeshi photographer and activist Shahidul Alam have demanded his immediate release, along with other humanitarian workers aboard the Conscience and Thousand Madleen vessels, while calling for an end to the occupation and genocide in Palestine.

Dozens of prominent figures, including New Delhi-based writer Arundhati Roy, New York-based scholar Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Cape Town-based playwright Mike van Graan, and Kathmandu-based journalist Kanak Mani Dixit, have signed a joint statement in this regard, according to a press release issued by Drik.

"We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Bangladeshi photographer and activist Shahidul Alam, along with all 91 other media an...