More ships join Gaza-bound Global Sumud mission from Tunisia to break Israeli siege

Sixteen ships in total have set sail from Tunisian ports as part of the Global Sumud Fleet for Gaza, a large-scale international flotilla of civilian boats aiming to break Israel's blockade on the territory and deliver humanitarian aid, activists tell Anadolu News Agency.

Khaled Boujemaa, a member of the Maghreb contingent of the Global Sumud Flotilla, told Anadolu on Monday that 11 of the ships departed from Bizerte Port in northern Tunisia from Saturday evening until late Sunday.

Three ships set sail from Gammarth Port in the capital, as two others left Sidi Bou Said Port near Tunis, Boujemaa said.

On Sunday, spokesperson Ghassan al-Hanshiri said that two ships left from Gammarth Port toward Gaza and “a third Tunisian ship was preparing to depart shortly,” noting that “a total of eight Tunisian ships are currently docked at Gammarth.”

More ships underway

He pointed out that other ships remain in Sidi Bou Said Port, while vessels from Italy and Spain have already departed, and all will meet in the Mediterranean on their way to Gaza.

On Saturday, the very first vessel of the Global Sumud Flotilla departed Tunisia’s Bizerte Port, in addition to 18 boats from Sicily’s Augusta Port, toward Gaza.