People of Tunisia welcome flotilla carrying aid to Gaza
Tunisia is the last stop for the Global Somoud Flotilla before heading to the Gaza enclave in a bid to provide humanitarian aid, according to The New Arab on September 7th.
The flotilla, comprising over 50 ships from 44 different countries, arrived in Tunisia after almost a week at sea and will meet with other participating boats over the next few days.
As they arrived in the Tunisian capital Tunis, they were met by Tunisian police alongside local boats chanting “Viva Palestina”, waving Palestine flags. The flotilla is expected to set back off on its course to Gaza on September 10th, where the journey is estimated to take over a week.
The waves of support the flotilla experienced as they docked are significant, given that pro-Palestine voices and support have been brutally suppressed by the Tunisian government and police, despite the overwhelming support for the Palestinian people.
Tunisia’s political stance is in stark contrast to that of other nations in the Maghreb region, with Mauritanian MPs electing to join the flotilla to represent the country’s solidarity against the war in Gaza.
In addition, volunteers from across Europe and the Arab world are on board the flotilla, including Greta Thunberg and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, Mandla Mandela.
Waiting for them at their destination are Israeli authorities, who plan to arrest the crew on board and detain them in the Ketziot and Damon prisons. Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has threatened to treat the flotilla volunteers as “terrorists”.
Support for the flotilla in Tunisia is representative of the current outpouring of emotion surrounding the situation in Gaza, and a form of resistance against President Kais Saied’s recalcitrance to support Palestine himself.
A Tunisian filmmaker’s movie ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ has received international acclaim at film festivals, recounting the horrifically true events of a six year-old girl trapped inside a car calling for emergency services, before she eventually passed.
This is an apt demonstration that Tunisian voices are increasingly reacting against their government’s official stance to show swathes of support for the people suffering in Gaza.
The New Arab, Maghrebi.org, Al-Jazeera
Want to chase the pulse of North Africa?
Subscribe to receive our FREE weekly PDF magazine
