Gaza Flatilla with Greta Thunberg on board leaves Barcelona

A flotilla of boats heading towards Gaza carrying 350 pro -Palestinian activists – including climate change activist Greta Thunberg – left Barcelona.

About 20 ships displaying Palestinian flags left the Spanish port at 7:00 p.m. Monday, filled with medical and food supplies.

Flotilla first tried to move on Sunday, but had to return to the port due to the stormy time.

The aim of the mission is to “break the illegal headquarters of Israel on Gaza”, said the organizers – although a previous attempt to reach Gaza by sea was intercepted by Israeli forces.

The World Flotilla World Mission plans to launch into two waves – the first of Barcelona and the second in Tunis on September 4.

The activists hope that the boats will converge in the Mediterranean before sailing to Gaza, a trip which should take seven or eight days.

“We sail again to break the seat and open a humanitarian corridor,” said Thunberg in a video message.

The singer Punk Bob Vylan – who provoked the controversy for having directed a song of “Death to the Idf (Israel Defense Forces)” in Glastonbury – spoke at the start of Flatilla on Sunday.

He described the activists as “courageous individuals” who “tried to do what should have been done by government intervention a long time ago”.

The Israeli authorities have characterized an earlier attempt to sail in Gaza as an advertising that offered no real humanitarian assistance.

In March, Israel introduced a total blockade of almost three months on the goods entering Gaza, before allowing a limited amount of goods in the territory at the end of May after international pressure. A body supported by the UN has since declared that there was a famine in certain parts of Gaza.

Israel has since tried to impose its own distribution system through the controversy Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which was criticized by the aid agencies.

In June, a yacht carrying Thunberg and several other activists – and a symbolic quantity of humanitarian aid – were intercepted by Israeli forces when she was trying to reach Gaza.

The Israeli authorities escorted the activists to the port of Ashdod before expelling them from the country.

In 2010, the Israeli commandos killed 10 people when they were on board the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, who led a levy of aid to Gaza.