"Handala" Humanitarian ship departs from Italy toward Gaza amid ongoing blockade
Dozens of people holding Palestinian flags and shouting "Free Palestine" cheered as about 15 activists got on board. The international Freedom Flotilla Coalition organizes and funds the project with gifts from people all over the world.
The French leader of the fleet, Claude Léostik, said the mission was a show of international unity with the people of Gaza and a way to bring attention to their pain because they are under lockdown.
On July 18, Handala will stop in Gallipoli, which is in the southeast of Italy. There, Gabrielle Catala and Emma Fourreau, two French MPs from the communist "La France Insoumise" party, will join the mission. Catala stressed how important it was to end the blockade and send aid, especially to the children of Gaza. He also said that any attempt to stop the mission would be another breach of international law.
Six weeks ago, in June, the Maddalena tried to make a similar trip but was stopped by Israeli troops about 185 km off the coast of Gaza. Twelve protestors were on that ship, including Greta Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a European MP who was arrested after the ship was sunk.
Humanitarian groups say that since the fighting started on October 7, 2023, over 196,000 Palestinians have been killed or hurt in Gaza. More than 10,000 people are still missing, and hundreds of thousands have been forced to leave their homes because of what Palestinian leaders call a U.S.-backed murder operation.
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Jordan Times
a day ago
- Jordan Times
Aid through action: Jordanian convoys reach war-torn Gaza, break Israel's cruel siege on tiny Strip
-JHCO secretary-general says Jordan begins breaking Gaza siege -Safadi calls for 'immediate', 'effective' int'l action to stop humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, ensure unimpeded access to aid -'Children [in Gaza] tell their parents they want to go to heaven, because at least heaven has food' AMMAN — Jordan has begun breaking the siege Israel is imposing on Gaza, Secretary-General of the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation(JHCO) Hussein Shibli said, reinforcing the Kingdom's ongoing efforts to ease the 'unprecedented' humanitarian catastrophe in the war-torn Strip. JHCO said it dispatched on Thursday its fifth humanitarian aid convoy to Gaza, in coordination with the World Central Kitchen (WCK) and the World Food Programme (WFP). Jordan's relief agency said the latest convoy carried 50 trucks loaded with flour, infant formula and other essential foodstuffs. The supplies are to be used in preparing hot meals and directly distributed inside Gaza by WCK teams. The delivery brings the total number of trucks sent since the beginning of the crisis to 181, comprising 7,932 trucks, according to official figures. 'Jordan has begun to break the siege on Gaza and deliver the aid every Jordanian hope to see reaching its people,' Shibli told Al Mamlaka TV. 'All deliveries are backed by political, diplomatic and military efforts led by His Majesty King Abdullah. We face obstacles, political, logistical, and security-related ,but we continue with full determination,' he added. Shibli said the Kingdom relies on trusted partners such as WFP and WCK to ensure aid reaches those in need. He highlighted Wednesday's successful entry of a 36-truck convoy through the Zikim crossing and added: 'Persistent coordination can overcome blockades and security threats. The distribution inside Gaza is direct and controlled to ensure it reaches those who need it most.' While Jordan's convoys push ahead, conditions on the ground in Gaza continue to deteriorate. Health officials in the enclave reported that tens of people were dying from starvation, raising the total death toll from hunger since the start of the war to 111, including at least 80 children. International aid efforts have faced repeated delays and attacks. Humanitarian workers reported that earlier attempts to deliver aid were obstructed by sniper fire and looting near border crossings, while instability on the ground continues to complicate distribution. In New York on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi held talks with UN Secretary-General António Guterres focused on confronting the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the ongoing Israeli restrictions on humanitarian access, according to a Foreign Ministry statement. The discussions also explored ways to enhance coordination between Jordan and UN agencies to expedite aid entry and ensure uninterrupted humanitarian delivery. Safadi stressed the need for 'immediate and effective' action by the international community to stop the humanitarian catastrophe and ensure unimpeded access to aid. He reiterated Jordan's firm position that 'protecting civilians, enforcing international humanitarian law, and ensuring the continuous flow of food, water, and medicine are legal and moral imperatives.' Jordan's top diplomat also emphasised that UNRWA's role is indispensable and irreplaceable, adding that any attempts to weaken or replace the agency would have dangerous consequences for millions of Palestinians relying on its services. 'The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is the worst in modern memory,' Safadi said. 'If the world fails to act now, history will remember this as a stain on our collective conscience.' Gaza is suffering man-made mass starvation caused by the blockade of aid into the territory, the head of the World Health Organisation Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said, as more than 100 agencies called on Israel to allow entry of supplies to the enclave. 'I don't know what you would call it other than mass starvation, and it's man-made, and that's very clear,' Ghebreyesus told a virtual press conference from Geneva. 'This is because of [the] blockade.' A letter signed by over 100 relief agencies, including Doctors Without Borders, Oxfam International and Amnesty International says the Israeli government is blocking humanitarian organisations from effectively distributing life-saving aid. 'Just outside Gaza, in warehouses, and even within Gaza itself, tonnes of food, clean water, medical supplies, shelter items and fuel sit untouched with humanitarian organisations blocked from accessing or delivering them,' the agencies wrote. 'The government of Israel's restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death.' The statement quoted an aid worker in Gaza who said, 'Children tell their parents they want to go to heaven, because at least heaven has food.'
Jordan Times
a day ago
- Jordan Times
Trump says Hamas 'didn't want' Gaza deal as talks break down
JERUSALEM — US President Donald Trump accused Hamas on Friday of not wanting to reach a ceasefire deal in Gaza as Israel said it would explore "alternative options" to rescue hostages after negotiations collapsed. An Israeli official meanwhile told AFP air drops of aid would resume soon over the Gaza Strip, where aid groups warned of surging numbers of malnourished children as international concern mounted over the deepening humanitarian crisis after more than 21 months of war. After US and Israeli negotiators quit indirect talks with Hamas in Qatar, Trump said that "it was was too bad. Hamas didn't really want to make a deal. I think they want to die." The US president argued that the Palestinian militant group, whose October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war, was not ready to hand over the remaining captives held in Gaza because "they know what happens after you get the final hostages". His special envoy Steve Witkoff accused Hamas of not "acting in good faith" in the negotiations that ended on Thursday. Senior Hamas official Bassem Naim in turn accused Witkoff of distorting the reality of the talks and walking back on agreements that had been reached between the parties. Witkoff was looking to "serve the Israeli position", Naim told AFP. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that "together with our US allies, we are now considering alternative options to bring our hostages home, end Hamas's terror rule, and secure lasting peace." Witkoff similarly said Washington would "consider alternative options" on Gaza, without elaborating on what they could entail. Netanyahu's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called to reinstate a complete aid blockade, occupy the entirety of Gaza, "encourage" its people to leave and re-establish Israeli settlements there. Mediators Qatar and Egypt said in a joint statement that the talks could still resume, describing their suspension as "normal in the context of these complex negotiations" and vowing to carry on with "intensive efforts" to secure an elusive breakthrough. 'Carnage and famine' More than 100 aid and human rights groups warned this week that "mass starvation" was spreading in Gaza. Doctors Without Borders [MSF] said that a quarter of the young children and pregnant or breastfeeding mothers it had screened at its clinics last week were malnourished, a day after the United Nations said one in five children in Gaza City were suffering from malnutrition. The leaders of Britain, France and Germany, in a joint statement Friday, said the "humanitarian catastrophe" in Gaza "must end now". "We call on the Israeli government to immediately lift restrictions on the flow of aid" and facilitate the "urgent" work of UN agencies and humanitarian groups, the European leaders said. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday slammed the international community for turning a blind eye to the suffering of starving Palestinians, calling it a "moral crisis that challenges the global conscience". Guterres said while he had repeatedly condemned Hamas's 2023 attack on Israel, "nothing can justify the explosion of death and destruction since." Israel has rejected accusations it is responsible for the deepening crisis in Gaza, which the World Health Organisation has called "man-made". An Israeli official said Friday that air drops of aid would resume "in the upcoming days" and "will be managed by the UAE and Jordan". Humanitarian organisations have repeatedly said that parachuting aid parcels, which began in early 2024, was ineffective and cannot replace land access. Numerous Palestinians had been killed by falling crates, in stampedes or drowned trying to retrieve packages from the sea, before the operations ended after several months. 'It's a trap' Israel placed the Gaza Strip under an aid blockade in March, which it only partially eased two months later while sidelining the longstanding UN-led distribution system. Aid groups have refused to work with the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, accusing it of aiding Israeli military goals. The GHF system, in which Gazans have to join huge queues to reach one of just four sites, has often proved deadly, with the UN saying that more than 750 Palestinian aid-seekers have been killed by Israeli forces near GHF centres since late May. In Khan Yunis, in Gaza's south, Fatima al-Shawaf mourned a relative she said was killed while seeking aid. "I would rather we die of hunger than have anyone go to this trap that is killing our youth. It is a trap," she told AFP. The World Food Programme said almost a third of people in Gaza are "not eating for days", with tens of thousands "in urgent need of treatment". Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed 59,676 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Hamas's October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.
Al Bawaba
13-07-2025
- Al Bawaba
"Handala" Humanitarian ship departs from Italy toward Gaza amid ongoing blockade
ALBAWABA - A new Freedom Flotilla ship called Handala sailed from the port of Syracuse in Sicily, Italy, on Sunday. It was bringing relief aid and pro-Palestinian activists who want to break Israel's ban on Gaza. The plan comes after more than 21 months of terrible war and a humanitarian crisis in the coastal region. Dozens of people holding Palestinian flags and shouting "Free Palestine" cheered as about 15 activists got on board. The international Freedom Flotilla Coalition organizes and funds the project with gifts from people all over the world. The French leader of the fleet, Claude Léostik, said the mission was a show of international unity with the people of Gaza and a way to bring attention to their pain because they are under lockdown. On July 18, Handala will stop in Gallipoli, which is in the southeast of Italy. There, Gabrielle Catala and Emma Fourreau, two French MPs from the communist "La France Insoumise" party, will join the mission. Catala stressed how important it was to end the blockade and send aid, especially to the children of Gaza. He also said that any attempt to stop the mission would be another breach of international law. Six weeks ago, in June, the Maddalena tried to make a similar trip but was stopped by Israeli troops about 185 km off the coast of Gaza. Twelve protestors were on that ship, including Greta Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a European MP who was arrested after the ship was sunk. Humanitarian groups say that since the fighting started on October 7, 2023, over 196,000 Palestinians have been killed or hurt in Gaza. More than 10,000 people are still missing, and hundreds of thousands have been forced to leave their homes because of what Palestinian leaders call a U.S.-backed murder operation.
