A small flotilla of boats sailed on Thursday for the Gaza Strip with the intention of delivering a cargo of humanitarian supplies and thereby breaking Israel’s naval blockade of the Hamas-controlled coastal enclave.

The Israeli-Arab Knesset member Basel Ghattas (Joint List), said before boarding the converted fishing trawler the Marianne of Gothenburg, which is leading the convoy, that it was his duty to take part in the event for the sake of Gaza’s residents.

“It is my right and moral obligation to tell the world, ‘Behold, look, in Gaza there is a closure and two million people are on the brink of explosion,'” Ghattas told the Hebrew-language Walla news site.

“A solution to this problem must be found, along with ways to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” he added.

Five vessels are taking part in the flotilla, which is expected to arrive off the coast of Gaza within three days.

Israeli officials have said that the boats will be stopped before they can dock in Gaza.

The Israeli-born Swedish activist Dror Feiler told the Hebrew-language Maariv website that all of those participating in the flotilla have signed a document committing to refrain from violent resistance if the IDF boards the vessels, and pledging that there would be no weapons on board.

Feiler also warned of the diplomatic ramifications of stopping the boats.

“We are sailing under a Swedish flag. The boat is Swedish. If the IDF tries to board the boat, this means it is entering Swedish territory,” he said. “Every soldier who goes onto the bridge will be considered a criminal under international law and we will make sure to find out his name and issue an international arrest warrant for him.”

In 2010, Israeli commandos intercepted the Turkish-flagged Mavi Marmara, the largest ship in a flotilla dispatched to Gaza by the Turkish relief agency Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), and were violently attacked by those on board, with several soldiers seriously injured. Nine Turks died when the commandos opened fire in what Israel said was self-defense, and one more died in hospital last year. MK Hanin Zoabi of the Joint (Arab) List was on the Mavi Marmara at the time.

Although Ghattas’s participation in the blockade challenge drew condemnation from many Israeli politicians, his own party backed his actions.

“We support the humanitarian flotilla with the participation of MK Basel Ghattas, which is intended to put on the agenda the terrible suffering of the residents of Gaza, who live in a massive prison,” the party said in a statement earlier this week.

Before joining the ship, Ghattas sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon urging them to let the flotilla reach the Palestinian coastal enclave or else face an international backlash.

The Marianne of Gothenburg traveled from Sweden through the waters of Norway, Germany, France, Spain and Portugal before reaching Messina, Italy, last week.

The boat then made its way to Crete, Greece, before setting sail for Gaza.

The activists say the vessels are carrying a cargo of solar panels and medical supplies for Gaza residents, who are still recovering from last summer’s conflict, and are slated to reach the Strip by the end of the month, unless they are intercepted.

Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade on Gaza in 2007 when the Islamist Hamas group took control of the Strip in a bloody coup, ousting the Palestinian Authority leadership.

Both countries say the blockade is meant to prevent Hamas, which is committed to the destruction of Israel, from importing weaponry into Gaza.

The IDF has intercepted a number of civilian ships carrying weapons headed for Gaza in recent years. It has also turned away attempts by activists to break the blockade.