Israel Faces New Challenge As Activists Launch Gaza-Bound Flotilla
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A flotilla carrying aid, activists and European lawmakers including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg is set to leave Barcelona on Sunday, aiming to reach Gaza by mid-September in what organizers call the largest solidarity mission to date.
Organizers of the Global Sumud Flotilla said the ships will attempt to “break the illegal siege of Gaza” and create a humanitarian corridor for the enclave.
They did not specify the number of vessels or exact time of departure.
“This will be the largest solidarity mission in history, with more people and more boats than all previous attempts combined,” Brazilian activist Thiago Avila told reporters in Barcelona last week.
Dozens of other vessels are expected to depart from Tunisian and other Mediterranean ports on September 4, organisers said.
Activists also plan coordinated demonstrations and protests in 44 countries.
Thunberg, who is part of the flotilla’s steering committee, confirmed the plans in a post on Instagram.
The mission will include European lawmakers and public figures such as former Barcelona mayor Ada Colau.
“We understand that this is a legal mission under international law,” Portuguese lawmaker Mariana Mortagua told journalists in Lisbon last week.
The Global Sumud Flotilla describes itself as independent and unaffiliated with governments or political parties.
Its name, Sumud, means “perseverance” in Arabic.
Israel intercepted two previous flotillas in June and July.
In June, 12 activists aboard the French sailboat Madleen, including Thunberg, were detained by Israeli forces 185 kilometres west of Gaza before being expelled.
In July, 21 activists from 10 countries were stopped aboard another vessel, the Handala.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has deepened in recent weeks.
The United Nations declared a famine in the territory this month, warning that 500,000 people face “catastrophic” conditions.
Israel’s genocidal military campaign has killed at least 63,371 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to the health ministry in Gaza.
