Netherlands: Activists support Gaza-bound flotilla

By Absullah Asiran

AMSTERDAM (AA) – Activists in the Dutch capital Amsterdam on Friday supported a boat parade that protests the decade-long Israeli blockade in Gaza.

Organized by the Netherlands Gaza Flotilla Coalition, several people gathered at Mauritskade dock.

The activists waved the flag of Palestine, chanted slogans, and handed out brochures that described the purpose of the flotilla and humanitarian problems in Gaza.

Among the four ships part of the flotilla in Amsterdam sailing to Gaza, one was dubbed “Al-Awda” (The Return), which departed from Norway.

The boats are expected to reach Rotterdam by the weekend.

As part of this year’s campaign launched by the international Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), the boat, along with five others, have been sailing to the Gaza Strip since May 15, the 70th anniversary of the foundation of Israel -- an event Palestinians refer to as the "Nakba" or "Catastrophe.”

As of the end of 2016, 1.3 million Gazans depended on international aid in order to survive, while nearly half of families in Gaza lacked access to secure food supplies, according to the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The flotilla also aims to reiterate that Palestinians driven from their homes in 1948 have the right to return.

On March 30, Palestinians began a six-week “Great Return March” along the eastern Gaza border with Israel to demand the right to return to their towns and villages in historical Palestine.

Since then, at least 118 Palestinian demonstrators have been martyred -- and thousands more injured -- by Israeli army gunfire near the Gaza-Israel security fence.

The boats are expected to arrive at the Gaza Strip by the beginning of July.