As it prepares to set sail this season, the Global Sumud Flotilla team says it expects “bureaucratic warfare” and potential acts of sabotage but is relying on public support to help strengthen the mission to reach Gaza.
During an urgent press conference at Palestine House in London on Monday, the coalition shared more details about one of the largest civilian-led maritime solidarity actions for Palestine, aimed at breaking the siege and delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Logistical details were shared sparingly due to surveillance and security concerns; however, there has been a call for people to get involved whether on the boat or on land by offering whatever skills they can contribute to the mission.
According to the organisers, this will be the first convoy of its size, with plans for dozens of boats to sail across the Mediterranean Sea simultaneously in the hope of reaching Gaza and breaking the illegal siege and blockade imposed by Israel since 2007.
The flotilla brings together organisers and participants from more than 40 countries.
The press conference comes just days after the Handala aid vessel was illegally intercepted by Israeli authorities.
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Global Sumud Flotilla Steering Committee member and German lawyer Melanie Schweizer said that what was happening in Gaza and more broadly in Palestine at the hands of Israel was against international law.
“The Gaza Strip is a killing field. People are being starved to death and the horrific thing about it is that we have already entered starvation stage five so that means the food that is coming in, is not going to help. They will need special medical aid and medical provision and caretaking.”
Aid entering, even if the borders and gates were opened, would be only a fraction of what is needed to assist Gaza’s population.
Gaza’s population of over two million people is facing irreparable harm due to state-sanctioned starvation used as a weapon in Israel’s genocidal war campaign.
“It needed to stop months ago, this is not acceptable. And yet we need to do everything that is within our powers to stop this madness,” Schweizer said.
“The people have to do this.The government will not wake up one day and say ‘Oh this is horrible, this is injustice’. It is up to us to hold our governments accountable and rise up.”
Schweizer said the action would be in compliance with the law.
“Everything that we have done was within the rights of the law and yet, we are being persecuted. We are being abducted and taken hostage and deported and held for many, many hours,” she said.
“This is a sign that states and politicians are not inline with law, they are actually disrespecting the law at every stance they get and intercepting a ship of international people in international waters is an international crime. This is illegal and holding them and bringing them to their country is also illegal.”
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Global Sumud Flotilla Steering Committee member and Palestinian activist Saif Abukeshek acknowledged that even with aid entering, deaths due to starvation in Gaza will not cease, attributing this to the failure of governments worldwide.
He said that people from across Southeast Asia, Latin America, Europe, and North Africa are all working together to cross the Mediterranean.
“They think the repression and illegal kidnapping of activists on Handala, on the Madleen last month will stop people, they do not understand the crimes they are committing in Palestine today is posturing every aspect of our life.”
He said the intended action is to send dozens of ships through the Mediterranean Sea, involving everyday people, activists, human rights organisations, and politicians.
Global Sumud Flotilla Steering Committee member, Malaysian humanitarian leader, and founder of Cinta Gaza Malaysia (CGM), Muhammad Nadir Al-Nuri, said it was also important to involve countries that have not come out strongly in support or solidarity with Palestine, in an effort to grow the movement for Palestine.
Member of the Global Sumud Flotilla Steering Committee Thiago Ávila was one of the coordinators onboard the Madleen vessel intercepted by Israel in June 2025.
“We realised that we should send dozens of boats at the same time to break the siege of Gaza, to carry every single drop of water, food, and medicine that we can, but also to open a permanent humanitarian corridor that could end the starvation. And as part of that, to bring about a massive mobilisation at sea, a mass movement that could be a game changer,” he said.
The coordinators explained that they could not share exact details due to concerns about sabotage, which they had already encountered on previous missions and which has become quite common.
Ávila said all attempts to break the siege had faced some form of sabotage, and some efforts were defeated due to what he called bureaucratic warfare, where nation-states are pressured to do things like withdraw a flag from one of the boats, have insurance companies refuse coverage, or pressure port authorities, coast guards, mayors, state governors, and heads of state to prevent the boats from departing.
“This bureaucratic warfare happens every single time and we are sure that we are going to face that but we count on people’s power, to not allow any nation-state to succumb to Zionist pressure,” he said.
Other, more direct attacks could also occur, such as in the case of the Conscience boat operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which was struck by drones in international waters near Malta in the early hours of May 2, 2025.
During a mission in 2010, Israeli authorities attacked and opened fire on activists aboard six ships of a flotilla organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the Turkish Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief.
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Nine activists were killed and 30 others wounded, with one later dying from their injuries.
On the Handala, there were reports of ropes tied to the propellers and the boat’s water tanks were contaminated with sulfuric acid.
Ávila said: “We had Handala last year, when we were trying to sail and they were trying to put contraband disguised as donations to create traps for people, they tried to infiltrate Zionists spies on our boat. So we have seen dozens of these things.”
There were also sabotage and infiltration attempts during the Global March to Gaza in June.
Schweizer said that ahead of the march, federal police in Germany were waiting in front of the gates of EgyptAir, asking passengers why they were traveling to Egypt.
“This has never happened before so why would they interrogate people? So you see that they are all working together.”
Schweizer said measures should be taken by states, including imposing an arms embargo, putting sanctions on Israel, and suspending trade agreements that provide beneficial terms to the country.
Abukeshek said there were people working around the clock to ensure the success of the mission and to protect it against infiltrations and sabotage attempts.
The website Globalsumudflotilla.org is where people can register. Organisers said they were seeking all kinds of skills, including skippers, social media experts, activists, and human rights organisations to join the mission.
Press briefing: Global Sumud #Flotilla announces civilian-led action to end Gaza siege. #Handala https://t.co/CrYRYFMtxt
— Salaamedia (@salaamedia) July 28, 2025
Image via Al Jazeera.
