TUNISIA / ISTANBUL
An initial vessel of the Global Sumud Flotilla departed Tunisia’s Bizerte Port towards the Gaza Strip on Saturday, according to a statement by the organizers.
“Global Sumud Flotilla’s first ship departs Tunisia, bound for Gaza,” the organizers said on US social media company X, sharing the video of the vessel.
Activists and journalists, including an Anadolu correspondent, captured the moment of departure for the first vessel that moved towards Gaza, with the aim of lifting the Israeli blockade and delivering humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
The Gaza-bound flotilla includes nearly 50 vessels, carrying between 500 and 700 activists, including artists, parliamentarians, and prominent political figures, from more than 45 countries.
The convoy is the largest of its kind to date, as previous attempts involved single ships that Israel intercepted at sea.
The organizers said the goal is to challenge the blockade and open a humanitarian corridor for the delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, where famine conditions have taken hold under Israel’s months-long aid blockade.
The Israeli army has continued a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 64,800 Palestinians since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.