Greta Thunberg joins Gaza-bound aid boat in defiance of Israeli blockade

A humanitarian vessel carrying aid to Gaza has departed the Italian port of Catania, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which announced the move on Sunday. The group’s renewed mission comes after an earlier attempt was thwarted by a drone strike on a separate ship in the Mediterranean widely attributed to Israel.

The ship, Madleen, is staffed entirely by volunteers, among them Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and Irish actor Liam Cunningham. FFC described the aid onboard as “limited amounts, though symbolic,” packed in barrels destined for besieged Palestinians in Gaza.

Earlier this month, another flotilla vessel, Conscience, was struck by two drones just outside Maltese waters. FFC blamed Israel for the attack. Israeli authorities have not publicly addressed the accusation or responded to media requests.

“We are doing this because no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying, because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity,” Thunberg told journalists at a press briefing ahead of the launch.

She went on to say, “no matter how dangerous this mission is, it is nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the lives being genocised”.

FFC stressed that their journey was not about charity but aimed to confront what they called Israel’s “illegal siege and escalating war crimes” through non-violent, direct action.

The group’s latest mission adds to a growing chorus of civil society efforts trying to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza, now in its 17th year and widely condemned by rights groups as collective punishment.