A flotilla carrying at least 25 patients, students and activists have broken Israel’s imposed boundary off the coast of the Gaza Strip, the first time in more than a decade. The group set sail on Tuesday morning from the besieged Gaza Strip, hoping to break Israel’s debilitating siege on the enclave that has trapped more than two million Palestinians since 2006.
By midday, the boat had crossed nine nautical miles (16km), with four Israeli warships flanking the vessel. “We’re surrounded by Israeli warships to the left, the right, to our front and from behind. We’re stuck in the middle,” an activist on the flotilla told reporters. “We’re all safe and request your prayers.”
Under the Oslo Accords signed in 1993, Israel is obligated to permit fishing up to 20 nautical miles, but this has never been implemented. The widest range Israel has allowed in the past 10 years is 12 nautical miles (22km), and at times, the limit was reduced to one nautical mile. Boats are often limited to six nautical miles (11km), and Israeli forces regularly fire warning shots to boats attempting to breach it.
The siege breaches our basic rights and dreams
Tuesday’s flotilla carried patients, students, and protesters who had been injured in the weeks-long demonstrations dubbed The Great March of Return – all hoping to reach Limassol, Cyprus, which lies north of Gaza. Organisers and authorities told Al Jazeera that all of those on board had valid passports, with the injured having made arrangements to receive medical treatment in Turkey. Hundreds of others boarded more than 30 boats in support of the main vessel, but said they would not cross the permitted boundary. The boats, most of which are small fishing vessels, carried men and women mostly in their 20s and 30s. Some families said they showed up with luggage and passports, hoping to leave Gaza for good.
Credit: Aljazeera
