The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), an international non-profit organization, announced that one of its vessels departed from Catania, Italy, on Sunday, en route to Gaza with humanitarian aid. This follows a previous attempt that was thwarted by a drone attack on a separate ship in the Mediterranean.
The vessel, named the Madleen, carries a crew of volunteers, including climate activist Greta Thunberg and Irish actor Liam Cunningham, and is carrying what the group describes as “limited amounts, though symbolic” of relief supplies.
Another vessel operated by the group, the Conscience, was struck by two drones just outside Maltese territorial waters in early May. The FFC has accused Israel of being responsible for the incident, though Israel has not responded to requests for comment.
“We are doing this because no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying, because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity,” Thunberg told reporters at a conference prior to the departure.
She added that “no matter how dangerous this mission is, it is nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the lives being genocided.”
The FFC stated that the trip “is not charity. This is a non-violent, direct action to challenge Israel’s illegal siege and escalating war crimes.”
The United Nations stated on Friday that the situation in Gaza is the worst it has been since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas militants 19 months ago, despite the resumption of limited aid deliveries to the Palestinian enclave.
Facing increasing global pressure, Israel ended an 11-week blockade on Gaza, allowing limited U.N.-led operations to resume.
A new avenue for aid distribution, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, was also launched on Monday, backed by the United States and Israel. However, the U.N. and international aid groups have declined to work with the foundation, citing concerns about its neutrality and a distribution model that allegedly forces the displacement of Palestinians.
