Peace activists from several countries are setting out on a converted trawler to defy an Israeli blockade and deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Reuters reports.
The “Handala” was visited in Malta by 78-year-old retired US Army Colonel and diplomat, Ann Wright, who was on board another coalition ship boarded by Israeli troops in 2010, in the incident in which nine activists died.
“These people are very brave, because we don’t know what’s going to happen. If the Israelis stop them, we know it’ll be brutal,” Wright said.
The brightly coloured “Handala” carries activists from Italy, France, Norway, Australia, the Netherlands, Syria and a number of Palestinians. It has made several port calls around Scandinavia and the Mediterranean to raise awareness about the situation in Gaza.
They are about to find Hamas tunnels under that ship, aren’t they?
Ann Wright
“These people are very brave, because we don’t know what’s going to happen. If the Israelis stop them, we know it’ll be brutal,”
America
It is the right of Israel to defend itself from people who wish to help other people whom Israel doesnt consider people.
That’s a really good idea. Kudos to them, hope their voyage is safe.
I have a sinking feeling it won’t be a safe voyage. Dollars to donuts the IDF sinks it and claims that it was actually a weapons shipment headed to Hamas and not humanitarian aid for Palestinians.
I doubt it actually. They do allow some food aid in, just not enough. If they didn’t, then everyone in Gaza would have starved already. They have no local food production anymore and a human cannot go 6 months without eating.
Stopping a single boat of food aid is probably not worth the diplomatic blowback it would cause.
Wasn’t there supposed to be a ship with activists delivering aid from Greece or someplace a few months back? I wonder what became of that…
I hope this one makes it safely.
I believe there was one departing from Turkey and the Turkish government stopped them.
Thanks. It would have been great if it made it through.
Oh man let them in. I want to see how fast they run when they see what Hamas actually operates.
