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The Global Sumud Flotilla movement is significant because it represents collective action by ordinary people against Israel’s brutalisation of Palestinian people under occupation.

It is a response to Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip which began in 2007, entailing extreme restrictions on goods – including food and medical aid – entering or leaving the territory.

While Israel claims the blockade was a security measure after Hamas took power in Gaza in 2007, human rights groups, such as Amnesty International, say the blockade is a collective punishment and breaks international law — particularly articles 27 and 47 of the Geneva Convention, which relate to an occupying power’s responsibility to ensure the welfare of the population.

These warnings were met with silence by a disinterested media establishment and world leaders largely acquiescent in Palestinians’ mistreatment.

The flotilla movement stepped into this breach, seeking to break the siege and draw attention to the criminal nature of the occupation.

Flotilla history

Understanding the impact of the previous blockade on Gaza is the context for the flotilla movement. It is provides the background to why October 7, 2023 happened — something much of the media and political discussion ignores.

Although Israel claims to have disengaged from the Gaza Strip in 2005, when it removed settler communities and soldiers from the ground, it maintained strict control over the territory by land, sea and air.

After 2007, Gaza was essentially cut off from the outside world; the blockade restricted Palestinians’ entry into and exit from the territory; it prevented university students in Gaza from receiving education in West Bank universities, professionals from participating in continuing education, patients from receiving healthcare, businesspeople from trading and families from staying united.

It meant that 40% of essential medicines were unavailable (compared to 15% in 2005) and five out of 10 families were categorised as food insecure. Gaza has experienced recession since the blockade began, with 47% unemployment and 80% of citizens depending on aid.

As an aside, one aspect of the medical blockade has been a total lack of radiotherapy and restrictions on chemotherapy for cancer patients. This means people have to go through a complex application process to leave Gaza and get treatment in the West Bank.

EuroMed Human Rights Monitor is one of several groups to condemn global leaders for accepting this system. Noura Erakat, one of EuroMed’s Board of Trustees, said: “The global community seems unfazed by the unliveable conditions in the Gaza strip, or the fact that an entire generation has grown up isolated from the world — save for its contact with advanced weapons technologies raining down on them from Gaza’s skies.”

The first flotillas to try and break the blockade were organised by the Free Gaza Movement, founded in 2006.

They had some success, with three boats making it to Gaza’s shores in August and October 2008, carrying medical supplies.

Three more journeys were organised between December 2008 and February 2009 (which was during Israel’s “Operation Cast Lead” war in Gaza), but they were intercepted by Israeli forces, as was another flotilla in June 2009.

From the beginning, the flotilla movement was an international one and often included high-profile political and cultural actors as well as grassroots activists. The most high-profile incident occurred in May 2010, when a flotilla organised by the Free Gaza Movement, together with Turkish organisation the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), sent more than 700 activists from around the world to accompany three cargo boats loaded with 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid.

This was the largest mission to date. But it ended with Israeli commandos boarding the Mavi Marmara and murdering nine activists — all but one of whom were Turkish nationals. Another activist later died from injuries during the attack and, shockingly, none of the families have received any compensation for their loved ones’ deaths.

The subsequent international outcry pressured Israel to ease the blockade of Gaza, although human rights groups assessed it as having little impact.

Since 2010, flotillas have sailed under the banner of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, and have sent boats in 2011, 2015, 2016, 2018 and two this year, the Madleen and the Handala.

Global Movement to Gaza

This year’s missions are more urgent since conditions in Gaza since March have become much worse. Israeli leaders describe their plan as “putting the Gazans on a diet”; they count the minimal amount of calories each person should receive.

Israel’s starvation campaign is impossible to deny, given how systematically it has been rolled out. Since the genocide began, aid workers — including Australian Zomi Frankcom — have been targeted. Spurious accusations made against United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine Refugees in the Near East prompted Western governments — including Australia’s — to cut off funding, even though UNRWA was the most effective organisation distributing aid.

Israel and the US’s Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) replaced multiple aid sites with only three in the centre and south, and turned those into daily massacre sites. To date, the GHF has been involved in killing nearly 2000 people who were trying to collect food.

Norman Finkelstein described the GHF’s set-up as “mouse traps”. He said they reminded him of the images from Holocaust concentration camps, where victims were forced to scramble for meagre amounts of food.

The forced starvation in Gaza was not the only prompt for me to join the Global March to Gaza earlier this year. Like many, I am horrified at the daily war crimes and the silence of politicians, journalists and even people I considered friends.

The Global March To Gaza was founded by a group of Palestinians, living in Europe. It brought more than 4000 people from around the world to Egypt in June, just as the flotilla boat, the Handala, was making its own attempt to break the siege.

Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to reach the Rafah border with the aid. But many returned with an enthusiasm to keep going.

It is from this that the Global Movement To Gaza (GMTG) — which is part of the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) — was born. The GSF is sending around 1000 grassroots activists from 44 countries on a journey to Gaza by boat. The first launch on August 31 was from Barcelona and a second leg of the journey has begun from Tunisia and Sicily.

Our contingent unites 10 activists from Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand, plus a team of people on land supporting them.

The support we have received from both countries — and around the world — stands in stark contrast to political leaders, who have hinted that we will not receive much protection if we are intercepted and attacked.

New Zealand deputy Prime Minister David Seymour told parliament on September 9 that the activists are not his priority. Meanwhile, Smartraveller has warned Australian citizens to “reconsider” joining the flotilla.

By contrast, we have received passionate endorsements from musicians, actors, health care workers, teachers and many others around the world. Impressively, Italian dock workers pledged to close down the ports in Europe if our flotilla was attacked or blocked from reaching Gaza.

Australia’s union movement has contributed its own support, with the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) endorsing our mission. One crew member is a member of the Queensland MUA branch.

Despite two drone attacks on our boats in Tunis in the second week of September, we are committed to continuing the journey.

[You can follow us on Instagram or TikTok at . Caroline Smith is a member of the Global Movement To Gaza.]