Barcelona on Sunday, in what organizers describe as the largest attempt yet to challenge Israel’s 18-year blockade of the Gaza Strip by sea.
The departure comes as Israel intensifies its offensive on Gaza City, further restricting food and supply deliveries to the north of the enclave. Earlier this month, food experts warned that Gaza City was in famine, with nearly half a million people across the territory facing catastrophic levels of hunger.
The Global Sumud Flotilla is transporting food, water, and medical supplies. Activists on board are demanding safe passage and the establishment of a humanitarian sea corridor. According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, nearly 63,000 people have been killed in the 23-month war, including at least 332 Palestinians who died of malnutrition, among them 124 children.
Organizers say the convoy, comprising about 20 boats with delegations from 44 countries, will be joined by additional vessels from Italy and Tunisia before heading east across the Mediterranean. Around 70 boats are expected to take part in the final leg of the journey, flotilla spokesperson Saif Abukeshek told Spanish public television. The fleet could reach Gaza by September 14 or 15.
Thousands of supporters gathered at Barcelona’s port to see the flotilla off, many waving Palestinian flags and chanting “Free Palestine!” and “Boycott Israel!” The diverse convoy included everything from aging luxury yachts and wooden sailboats to industrial vessels. One ship, the Sirus, is more than a century old.
Humanitarian cargo has also departed from the Italian port of Genoa and is expected to merge with the flotilla in the coming days.
This is not the first attempt by activists this year. Greta Thunberg, who was deported by Israel in June after her ship Madleen was intercepted, criticized Israel’s repeated actions against humanitarian missions. “Israel has continuously violated international law by unlawfully intercepting boats in international waters and preventing aid from reaching Gaza,” she told The Associated Press.
The Global Sumud Flotilla marks the fourth attempt in 2024 to break the maritime blockade. Previous missions — including the Conscience, Madleen, and Handala — were intercepted by the Israeli military, with activists detained and aid cargo, such as food and baby formula, seized.
An Israeli official said Saturday that the government will soon restrict humanitarian aid further in northern Gaza as military operations expand, a day after Gaza City was declared a combat zone.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants launched an attack inside Israel, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages.
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