From the Liveblog of
Thursday, May 14, 2026
Organizer of new activist flotilla says ships have departed Turkey for Gaza
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Dozens of ships set sail today from southwestern Turkey as part of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, an organizer tells AFP.
“Around 50 ships sailed from Marmaris around an hour ago,” says Gorkem Duru, a member of the Turkey branch of the Global Sumud Fleet.
“They will be joined by four or five ships from the Freedom Flotilla Coalition in international waters. Now they are sailing for Gaza,” he adds.
The Israeli Navy is set to intercept the boats, and in the past has done so well before the activists were able to get close to Gaza’s coast.
Israel has previously dismissed the flotillas as publicity stunts, after their organizers rejected calls to transfer the small amount of symbolic aid they had been carrying with them to Israel or international organizations to be taken into the Strip and distributed via official channels.
The Global Sumud Flotilla will be the third initiative in a year aiming at breaking an Israeli blockade on Hamas-ruled Gaza, which has suffered severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel since the Palestinian terror group invaded Israel in October 2023, sparking two years of war in the coastal enclave.
Israeli forces intercepted the second flotilla in international waters off Greece on April 30, expelling most of the activists to Europe, but arrested two of them who were held for 10 days.
The Times of Israel Community.