The Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) is a civil society initiative made up of various entities, including the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the Global Movement for Gaza, Cinta Gaza Malaysia, Sumud Convoy, Coordination for Joint Action for Palestine and Million Rural Women and the Landless.
The 13 activists listed on GSF’s “Steering Committee” have either founded, presided, coordinated or become a spokesperson for at least one of these committees and coalitions.
GSF’s website features a tracker with the sailing boats and names of the individuals who have started sailing from Barcelona, Spain to Tunis, Tunisia.
“Delegations from 45 countries have already committed to sail to Gaza as part of the largest maritime mission to break Israel’s illegal siege,” GSF said.
Each country has its own link and social media accounts attached for the delegations it has sent.
The page also opens with Greta Thunberg, who has recently been reported in Tunis. She was warmly welcomed when her part of the GSF flotilla first arrived.
“We all know why we are here,” Thunberg said. “Just across the water there’s a genocide going on, a mass starvation by Israel’s murder machine.”
Though other efforts have been made to reach the strip by sea, they were often left unsuccessful
“In June, Israel intercepted another ship carrying Thunberg, Hassan and other activists, towed them to shore and deported them from the country. And in July, 21 activists from 10 countries were intercepted as they tried to approach Gaza in another vessel, the Handala,” The Times of Israel reported.
And yet, they’ve chosen to return with their own cavalry of commoners, despite the growing dangers of drone attacks, which have recently hit both Thunberg’s vessel, known as the GSF “Family Boat,” and a secondary vessel. Though authorities have denied the use of drones specifically, videos of the damage have called into doubt the integrity of the investigations.
Though activists and internationally recognized advocates are part of the GSF, the movement is a testament to the willpower of regular citizens.
“We are a coalition of everyday people — organizers, humanitarians, doctors, artists, clergy, lawyers and seafarers — who believe in human dignity and the power of nonviolent action,” GSF said. “In June, we launched a globally coordinated mobilization by land, sea and air. In summer, we return with a unified strategy: one goal and global coordination like never before.”
The organization continues to explain that, “our efforts build on decades of Palestinian resistance and international solidarity. Though we belong to or hold different nations, faiths and political beliefs, we are united by a single truth: the siege and genocide must end. We are independent, international and unaffiliated with any government or political party. Our allegiance is to justice, freedom and the sanctity of human life.”
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition website and social media states, “we sail until Palestine is free.”
