BARCELONA, Spain — A massive flotilla of more than 70 vessels departed from Barcelona, Spain on Wednesday, carrying activists and humanitarian supplies destined for Gaza.
The Global Sumud Flotilla includes over 1,000 participants from nations worldwide, with organizers describing it as the largest civilian-led maritime mobilization of its type opposing Israel’s policies in the Palestinian territory.
Approximately 40 vessels launched from Barcelona’s port, while additional boats will merge with the convoy from various Mediterranean ports as the fleet travels eastward, according to Thiago Ávila, a flotilla leader who addressed media during a symbolic departure ceremony in Barcelona on Sunday. Weather conditions had forced organizers to postpone their original April 12 launch date.
With global focus shifting to conflicts involving Iran, activists are hoping their current mission will redirect international attention to the circumstances facing Palestinians in Gaza.
“We sail because governments have failed,” said Saif Abukeshek, a Palestinian activist and member of the flotilla’s global steering committee.
“They want a society that feels helpless, that cannot act, that cannot mobilize,” Abukeshek stated on Sunday. “We refuse to be that society.”
Gaza recently observed six months since a ceasefire ended the most severe combat between Israeli military forces and Hamas-led fighters. However, Israeli military operations have resulted in more than 700 deaths in the six months following the ceasefire, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Significant ceasefire implementation tasks remain incomplete, including Hamas disarmament, ending their governance, establishing an international peacekeeping presence, and initiating extensive rebuilding efforts. Approximately 2 million Gaza inhabitants continue living amid destruction with inadequate food and medical supplies, receiving only restricted aid through one Israeli-monitored border crossing.
Both Israel and Egypt have maintained various levels of a blockade on Gaza since Hamas took control from competing Palestinian factions in 2007. Israel maintains the blockade prevents Hamas from acquiring weapons, while opponents argue it constitutes collective punishment of Gaza’s Palestinian residents.
The Global Sumud Flotilla’s current initiative follows less than a year after Israeli authorities thwarted a previous attempt.
Last autumn, numerous vessels approached Gaza waters, with one actually breaching the 12-nautical-mile boundary separating international waters from Gaza’s territorial zone. However, all were eventually intercepted, confiscated, or forced to retreat.
Participants in last year’s mission, including Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, faced arrest, imprisonment, and deportation by Israel. They alleged mistreatment during detention, claims Israeli officials rejected.
Their maritime interception was transmitted live through onboard cameras, generating global demonstrations at the time. However, Gaza-focused attention has diminished as current Iran-related conflicts dominate Middle Eastern affairs and impact international markets.
Organizers aim for this mission to restore focus on Palestinian living conditions in the Gaza Strip, devastated by the Israel-Hamas conflict. Over 70,000 Palestinians have died since the war began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel, which killed approximately 1,200 people and resulted in 251 hostages.
Greenpeace Spain and migrant rescue organization Open Arms, which have dedicated their two major ships to accompany the smaller flotilla vessels, are among the mission’s supporters.
“We sail because the people of Gaza have a right to exist and to breathe and to thrive on their land,” said Eva Saldaña, head of Greenpeace Spain.
