"Governments have failed and the people have to step up."
------solidarity activist with the Global Sumud Flotilla
After being briefly held-up by bad weather, a flotilla of dozens of boats and hundreds of solidarity activists representing forty-four countries has resumed its voyage to Gaza intending to break Tel Aviv's blockade of the strip, currently the scene of a deliberate famine orchestrated by the Jewish state, on top of ongoing bombings that have released the equivalent of eight Hiroshima-sized atomic bombs on the tiny enclave.
A striking feature of this peaceful, humanitarian initiative, named the Global Sumud Flotilla, is the fact that it constitutes the broadest gesture of solidarity with the Gazan population yet seen, as well as the widest repudiation of the U.S.-Israeli massacre and expulsion campaign, the latter shamelessly proclaiming its intention to seize the land and resources of the area, even if it means walking over piles of dead Gazans to do so.
This is not the first attempt to break the blockade imposed by Tel Aviv; on various occasions groups like Open Arms, World Central Kitchen, and the Flotilla of Liberty sent ships loaded with aid for the Gazan population, but in each case the activist crews were kidnapped on the high seas by the Israeli Navy and prevented from arriving at their destination.
What distinguishes the current attempt from previous ones is the large number of ships and people involved, as well as the mass demonstrations of solidarity that have greeted the Flotilla in various Mediterranean ports along the route.
It is truly shameful that this initiative has had to be organized by civil society, as apart from Yemen, no government has dared to directly confront Israel over its wholesale barbarism, not even just enough to let the Gazan population receive desperately needed food and medicine.
Labor solidarity is proving itself a crucial part of the emerging resistance to the vile U.S.-Israel extermination effort. In Genoa, Italy, for example, Riccardo Rudino, representative of port and dock workers there, recently issued this warning: "It has to be clear to everyone. In mid-September the boats will be approaching the Gaza Strip, in the critical zone. If for just twenty minutes we lose contact with the boats, with our solidarity comrades, we will blockade all of Europe . . . not one nail will ship from here. We will institute an international strike; we will close the roads and schools."
Meanwhile, at least eighty-five more Gazans were killed yesterday, including five children looking for water in al Mawasi, a supposed safe zone.
"We wake up to bombings and find the majority of our neighbors dead," said resident Sanaa al Dremili.
It's up to us to end this nightmare.
Sources:
"Gaza: Demanding Humanity," La Jornada (Spanish), September 1, 2025
"Israel Calls Up 60,000 Reservists To Reinforce its Gaza Offensive," La Jornada (Spanish), September 3, 2025
"Maritime Workers Threaten To Paralyze Europe if Anything Happens to the Humanitarian Flotilla," La Jornada (Spanish), September 3, 2025
"Israel Threatens Greta With Hard Prison Time As New Gaza Flotilla Sets Sail," Due Dissidence, September 3, 2025
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