Humanitarian ship leaves Sicily to challenge rogue coloniser state’s starvation siege of Gaza
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) humanitarian vessel Handala has set sail from Siracusa, Sicily and begun its journey to Gaza, where it will seek to break Israel’s criminal starvation blockade of Gaza that has put almost two million people into severe malnutrition and is causing deaths daily, as well as Israel’s constant bombing of refugees in tents, shelters and hospitals.
The boat carries life-saving humanitarian aid and a message of solidarity from people around the world refusing to stay silent as Gaza is starved, bombed, and buried under rubble – and comes after the Handala’s sister ship Madleen was attacked, pirated and its volunteer crew ot twelve unarmed civilians, including a member of the European Parliament, a doctor, journalists, and human rights defenders abducted by Israel in international waters. An earlier vessel, the Conscience was badly damaged in a night-time bombing by Israeli drones in early May, also in international waters for its supposed offence of attempting to bring food, medicine, and solidarity to Palestinian innocents under siege.
The Starmer government did not even object to Israel’s blatant criminality, despite the Madleen’s status as a UK-registered ship that the British government is obliged to defend and protect.
An FFC statement reads:
We are not backing down.
Handala sails in the shadow of ongoing mass atrocities. Since March 18, 2025, when Israel broke the ceasefire and resumed attacks on Gaza, at least 6,572 Palestinians have been killed and over 23,000 injured, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Among them, over 700 were gunned down as they waited for food at distribution points controlled by the U.S. and Israel-backed “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” (GHF), a death trap masquerading as an aid scheme, a structure of control and cruelty serving Israel’s genocide.
Handala is part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a grassroots international network that has been sailing against the blockade since 2010. On board are volunteer medics, lawyers, social justice activists, journalists, and community organizers. We are not governments. We are people, taking action where institutions have failed.
For the children of Gaza.
Named after the Palestinian cartoon figure Handala, a barefoot refugee child who turned his back on injustice and vowed not to turn around until Palestine is free, this boat carries his spirit and that of every child in Gaza who has been denied safety, dignity, and joy. In 2023 and 2024, Handala sailed to ports around Europe and the UK, breaking through the media blockade, engaging the public, and building solidarity through press events, art installations, and political education in every port it visited.
The children of Gaza, who make up over half the population, have been living under a brutal blockade and siege for their entire lives. Since October 2023, over 50,000 have been killed or injured, tens of thousands orphaned, and nearly a million forcibly displaced and homeless. All now face famine, disease, and trauma few of us can imagine.
This mission is for them.
As with the Madleen, supporters can track the Handala’s journey here.
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All the very best to them, but they must know of course that there is no way the mass murdering genocidal fascist scum in Israel are gonna allow them to succeed.
I know it’s just stating the obvious, but in a scenario where Russia did what Israel did re the previous mission, Starmer and Lammy et al would have been screaming blue murder and condemning Putin for piracy and kidnapping of course, along with the MSM. But when it’s Israel and their fascist buddy Netanyahu, it’s no problem whatsoever.
_____________________________
Anyway, off topic, but on reading a related Guardian piece on the topic (posted today) and then doing a search, I came across the following article about forever chemicals on PAN UKs website (from April last year), which I’m sure will be of interest to many readers:
‘Forever chemicals’ found in UK food
https://www.pan-uk.org/pfas-forever-chemicals/
Yes, I’m sure that’s of interest to many, who will then (from observation) throw out their plastic, tins, bottles onto the roadside because, well it’s such and effort to take them home and recycle them, rather than just chuck them out of the car window.
Thanks for highlighting the pesticide “Forever Chemicals” (synthetic compounds known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)).
The use of these compounds is as harmful to human health as a zionist Israel is to Palestinians.
If you don’t mind, just 3 key points from your report:
1 – 25 PFAS pesticides are currently in use in the UK, six of them are classified as ‘Highly Hazardous’.
2 – One, in particular – a insecticide lambda-cyhalothrin – is highly toxic to both humans and bees.
3 – In 2022 alone, 9,200 kg of that single pfas (lambda-cyhalothrin) was applied to 1.69 million hectares of UK farmland—equivalent to eleven times the area of Greater London. Farmers are generally unaware that these chemicals are being used, AS. PRODUCT LABELS DO NOT DISCLOSE PFAS CONTENT .
The presence of PFAS in pesticides poses a significant and avoidable danger. The left should make urgent calls for regulatory action and transparency in agricultural practices – goes without saying, the vile Sir Keir and his BlackRock ‘investors’ would – of course – resist demands for transparency and reduction.
Some good news, 25 decent states including Columbia & South Africa are meeting in Bogotá next week to try to
co-ordinate action against the Genocide in Gaza.
‘Sadly Handala will be treated just the same.
Indifference from Western Leaders in their capitalist cucoons.
Wish we had the power to send in carrying food aid.
99 (million) red (helium) balloons?’
Yours in Peace.
The solution is incredibly simple and was done successfully 76 years ago. Airlift food, water and medical supplies in to Gaza. It was done in 1948/9 when aircraft were far smaller than modern ones. If we decided to do it from Akrotiri tonight, it could be in operation tomorrow The Israelis have learned their lesson – don’t attack countries that will fight back. It’s not quite the same as bombing, shelling and shooting totally unarmed civilians especially those between 0 and 10 which is all the “brave” IDF dare do. Fancy the thought, drop in food water and medicines instead of UK-made weapons of murder for cowards.
Don’t talk about the dead children:
Yes RAF instead of whatever you are under orders to do the drop in bread, water, nutritional food & medical aid.
And as W argues could be done very soon.
Oh and and interesting point in Friday’s FT.
48% of UK apprenticeships are in the military mainly the army & navy & about 10% of these are with arms makers like BAE.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could get a Govt in that puts peace & international co-operation with all other counties first which is actually free.
I have long had this pipedream for converting our pointless and threatening aircraft carriers into aid ships. Stock them to the gunwales with supplies, including flat-pack housing, and of course operating theatres and medical facilities and make them available to sail anywhere in the world that they could be of use, whether that be Gaza, a hurricane devastated island or one in the days immediately after a Tsunami. Paint them white and spread a bit of soft power around the world. If you like, get into a (non) arms race about delivering help to those in desperate need with other countries. If America wishes to use its military to “persuade folks to their way of living, that’s up to them. But we could do something of which, for a change, the whole country could be proud! Maybe on the back-burner for when Corbyn and Sultana’s party gets in?
2nd line above, delete “the.”
“Spain’s National Court on Tuesday launched a criminal investigation into Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Israel Katz, and several senior military officials over their alleged involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity, particularly Israel’s attack last month on a humanitarian aid ship, the Anadolu news agency reported.”
https://www.palestinechronicle.com/spain-launches-war-crimes-probe-into-netanyahu-officials-over-madleen-attack/
Should that not be happening in every 125 member states that have ratified the Rome Statute and thereby recognise the jurisdiction of the ICC? Each one of which is obliged to arrest individuals subject to ICC warrants, SteveH?
(Clearly SteveH’s support for the vile Sir Keir is an issue for him here. The UK is, nevertheless, a full member of the ICC.
On present output it would not be unreasonable to anticipate Billy No Mates arguing that documents such as the Rome Statute are invalid as they are produced by [checks notes] a “pressure group” (The ICC).
Such are the workings of the mind of a shill for a collapsing empire.
Dave – “On present output it would not be unreasonable to anticipate Billy No Mates arguing that documents such as the Rome Statute are invalid as they are produced by [checks notes] a “pressure group” (The ICC).”
On for goodness sake stop being so silly. Given that you have no evidence to support your nonsense it would be entirely unreasonable.for you to presume that I view the ICC as anything but a competent international court. You are more than welcome to try proving otherwise. 🤔
an antisemitic pressure group?
FWIW Dave , I’ve seen his posts on other sites where they seem much more nuanced – he might just be playing games when he posts here.