Freedom Flotilla sails toward Gaza

By Sefa Mutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Three boats of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) are now on the last leg of their journey to Gaza to challenge the decade-long Israeli blockade in the region, according to the Istanbul-based NGO on Tuesday.

In a statement, the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), one of the founding members of the coalition, said that the flotilla was now advancing toward the besieged city after stopping at over 15 European ports in the Mediterranean.

The flotilla of boats dubbed “Al-Awda,” “Falastine” and “Freedom” set sail from Norway on May 15 under the slogan "Right to a Just Future for Palestine".

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

Every year for eight years now, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition has been launching a new campaign to challenge the blockade.

On May 31, 2010, Israeli commandos killed nine Turkish activists in the Mavi Marmara boat convoy in international waters. The convoy, which was part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, was headed for Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid. Another activist later succumbed to his injuries.