The people of Gaza has been subjected to an increasingly severe blockade by Israel, resulting in a man-made humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions for over four years.
People of Gaza are trying to meet their most basic needs through tunnels, as unemployment rates hit 70%. 60% of the population lives under the poverty line, thousands of people are without homes. The United Nations has referred to Israel’s near hermetic closure of Gaza as “collective punishment,” strictly prohibited under Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. All nations signatory to the Convention have an obligation to ensure respect for its provisions.
Amnesty International’s Annual Human Rights Report stated that Israeli’s siege on Gaza has “deepened the ongoing humanitarian crisis. Mass unemployment, extreme poverty, food insecurity and food price rises caused by shortages left four out of five Gazans dependent on humanitarian aid. The scope of the blockade and statements made by Israeli officials about its purpose showed that it was being imposed as a form of collective punishment of Gazans, a flagrant violation of international law.”
Gaza desperately needs this humanitarian aid. We are talking about a region where the 75% of infrastructure has been destroyed by Israel’s latest attacks. During Operation Cast Lead carried out by Israel in December 2008- January 2009, around 1500 Palestinians lost their lives. In fall 2009, Goldstone Report was declared by the UN. The UN and other Amnesty reports have made it clear that there are human rights violations in Gaza. In addition to the dead, more than 5000 people were injured during the attacks. More than 6000 homes were destroyed. Other than those died during the Israeli offensive, around 10,000 people have lost their lives due to treatable diseases, kidney problems and cancer because of the restrictions on the medicines and medical equipment.
According to a report by the United Nations Development Programme in May, 2010, despite the fact that 16 months have passed over the attacks, three fourth of the damage caused by the attacks in Gaza have not been repaired yet because of the closure. Around 5000 families are trying to survive in tents in Gaza.
Palestine, Gaza in particular, continues to be the most sensitive issues in the eyes of world public and Muslim community around the world. Governments’ failure to create constructive solutions regarding the issue contributes to the emergence and significance of civilian initiatives.
End of last year, the world witnessed another example of civilian solidarity with Palestine and in December 2009, Viva Palestina convoy was launched with the participation of people from regions such as Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia in order to show their support to the people of Palestine. IHH (The Foundation For Human Rights And Freedoms And Humanitarian Relief) organized the Turkey and the Middles East leg of the convoy which was the third convoy to Gaza up until then. By this vehicle convoy, 155 vehicles travelled to Gaza including ambulances, garbage trucks, minivans and meals on wheels. 220 people from Turkey joined the convoy in addition to 500 volunteers from over 17 countries. The convoy launched from Turkey on the 6th of December and reached Gaza on the 7th of January, 2010 travelling through Syria, Jordan and Egypt. Through this vehicle convoy, aid cargo was delivered to the people of Gaza who had run out of medical supplies. The convoy attracted enormous attention from the public throughout the journey and Palestine was the number one news in those countries on the route for a while.
Following the Viva Palestina convoy by land, another major initiative, called “Palestine Our Route, Humanitarian Aid Our Load”, is underway to deliver aid by the sea to Gaza Strip. Hundreds of concerned people set out onboard 9 ships in May to deliver humanitarian aid cargo to Gaza. Thousands of volunteers from around the world have been working towards realizing this campaign through which over 10,000 tons of aid will be delivered to Gaza onboard ships from Ireland, England, Kuwait, Algeria, Greece and Turkey. From the start of the embargo, seven other flotillas consisting of small ships have reached Palestine, but a large-scale aid campaign such as this one has been never run before.
Around 800 people from all walks of life, of different religions and nationalities joined the flotilla from over 50 countries including representatives of NGOs, donors, activists, press members and MPs. Passengers of the Freedom Flotilla come from countries like Britain, Spain, Afghanistan, Venezuela, Indonesia, Malaysia, Kuwait, Australia, Sweden, Mauritania, Macedonia, Bahrain, Pakistan, Vatican, Germany, Argentina, Morocco, Italy, Canada, Syria, Lebanon, Amman, South Africa, France, Bosnia Herzegovina, New Zealand, the U.S.A., Ireland, Greece, Yemen, Jordan, Albania, Egypt and Turkey.
There are also 2 MPs from Germany, 1 from Sweden, 1 from England, 10 from Algeria, 1 from Kuwait, 1 from Jordan, 3 from Yemen, 1 from Bahrain, 2 from Egypt onboard the flotilla. Muhammad Zeidan, Raed Salah, Hanin Zuabi are amongst the participants of the flotilla in addition to a Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire, former U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney, a Holocaust survivor in her 80s named Hedy Epstein, a retired U.S. army colonel and lawmakers from a dozen European countries.
Aid cargo that will be delivered to Gaza via this flotilla contains 150 tons of iron, 98 power units of all kinds, 50 precast homes, 16 units of children’s playgrounds including combined sets, seesaws and slides and medical equipments such as ultrasound scan devices, x-ray devices, electric patient beds, dentistry units, Doppler echocardiography devices, wheelchairs, disabled electric mobility scooters, stretchers, deambulateurs, autoclaves, mammography device, microscopes, hemodialysis machines, radiology monitors, crutches, ENT Units, operating beds, gynecological couches, textiles such as towels, bedding, shoes, fabric, carpets, kitchenware, quilts, blankets, couches and beds, construction supplies including tiles, timber, fiberboard, cage, plumbing supplies, electric equipment, plastic window frames, glass, steel cables, measuring tools, hand carts, nails, mountings, bathroom fittings, paint, power distribution units, ladders, isolation materials.
Israeli government is now preparing a military operation to stop the humanitarian aid flotilla which is carrying hundreds of activists and over 10,000 tons of aid materials and is expected to arrive in Gaza within a few days from now. Israeli Ministers during a recent meeting regarding the flotilla decided that if the flotilla does not turn back, the boats will be hauled to an Israeli port, the activists sent back to their countries and the supplies transferred to Gaza by land. The operation will be run by the navy. Palestinian activists will be arrested in Ashdod and rest of the activists will be deported after being interrogated.
However, the flotilla will be sailing through international waters only before entering the Gaza territorial waters. If Israel attempts to intercept the ships in the international waters, that will be a clear violation of international laws. Israel has no right to touch civilian ships sailing in international waters. Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry has started a propaganda campaign trying to impose the idea that the flotilla is not carrying anything of crucial necessity to Gaza and Israel has been delivering these goods via “proper means” into the territory. However, a document has been declared by Gisha, an Israeli human rights advocacy organization, in May, 2010. The document contains a short list of goods allowed entry and a huge list of some of the items that are not allowed into Gaza including food items such as fruit jam, chocolate, vinegar, halwa (a desert made of sesame seeds, butter, sugar and flour), ginger, potato chips, dried fruits, construction materials such as timber, cement, iron bars, plastic, metal and glass containers, textile items, fishing equipment, notebooks, A4 printing papers, pens, pencils, other stationery goods, livestock including horse, goat, cattle and poultry… etc.
9 ships in total are planned to join the flotilla, 3 from Turkey, 1 from Greece, 1 from Ireland, 2 from England, 1 from Algeria and 1 from Kuwait. The ships embarked on from Antalya on the 27th of May, Thursday night. The ships are going to meet the rest of the flotilla in international waters at an assigned meeting point near of Cyprus. If not intercepted, the ships will arrive in Gaza in 24 hours after leaving on Saturday from that meeting point.
IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation
