The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) announced on Thursday that a new convoy of 11 vessels is making its way toward the Gaza Strip in defiance of Israel’s long-running blockade.
According to the coalition, two boats carrying Italian and French flags left the port city of Otranto on 25 September. They were joined on 30 September by the vessel Conscience, which is carrying acclaimed Bangladeshi photographer and activist Shahidul Alam.
The flotilla is expected to link up with another group of eight boats known as Thousand Madleens to Gaza, forming a combined convoy of 11 ships, reports Anadolu Agency.
The FFC said around 100 people are on board the vessels, currently sailing off the coast of Crete. The passengers include human rights activists, lawyers, journalists and medical professionals.
The organisation, founded in 2008, has launched multiple sea missions over the years aimed at breaking Israel’s blockade and drawing global attention to Gaza’s worsening humanitarian crisis.
The latest mission comes just a day after Israeli naval forces seized 42 aid boats heading toward Gaza and detained more than 450 activists. Those vessels were taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod.
Israel has frequently intercepted Gaza-bound convoys, confiscating aid and deporting those on board. The blockade, imposed nearly 18 years ago, has left 2.4 million Palestinians trapped in the enclave.
Restrictions were further tightened in March when border crossings were shut and supplies of food and medicine blocked, pushing Gaza to the brink of famine.
Since October 2023, Israeli military assaults have killed more than 66,200 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children.
The United Nations and international rights groups have repeatedly warned that Gaza is becoming uninhabitable, with hunger and disease spreading at an alarming pace.
