The Madeleine ship sets sail from Italy to break the Gaza blockade
On Sunday, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition’s ship, the Madeleine, set sail from the Italian port of Catania to break the Israeli blockade on Gaza.
Before the 18-meter-long sailboat set sail, many people flocked to the port to support it, waving Palestinian flags.
The ship is carrying 12 people, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and Irish actor Liam Cunningham.
Thunberg said before leaving the port that they were on a civilian mission aimed at symbolically breaking the siege on Gaza).
She added, “If there is even one shred of humanity left, we must fight for Palestine, for a free Palestine… I am here because it’s my duty”.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition issued a statement regarding the Madeleine’s mission, “The Madeleine is heading to Gaza carrying milk powder, medical supplies, and other vital aid… It aims to reach Palestinian territorial waters via European territorial waters, which are fully international waters”.
The statement added, “This unarmed and nonviolent flight is fully in accordance with international law… Any attack or interference constitutes a deliberate and unlawful act against civilians”.
The Madeleine is expected to reach Gaza’s shores after a journey of approximately one week, but there is a risk of it being stopped by Israeli forces in international waters, as happened with the Freedom Flotilla Coalition’s ship last May.
The “Conscience” ship, which was created through the participation of international initiatives and campaigns from around the world to stop Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, was attacked by drones on May 2.
The attack caused a hole in the ship’s hull and a fire in its bow, according to coalition sources.
The Israeli military transport plane flew in the vicinity of Malta for three hours, shortly before the drone attack on a Freedom Flotilla coalition ship carrying humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
Through a deliberate policy paving the way for forced displacement, Israel is starving 2.4 million Palestinians in Gaza by closing the crossings to humanitarian aid, particularly food, since March 2.
