Maghreb activists urge governments to protect Gaza aid flotilla
Maghreb activists are calling on their North African governments to protect people on board an aid flotilla carrying aid for Gaza, The New Arab reported on September 25th.
These calls came following a suspected drone attack targeting the Global Sumud Flotilla, which has led to Spain and Italy’s governments deciding to deploy navy ships to protect their citizens on board.
The drone attack occurred while the vessel was in Tunisian waters; members of the flotilla had arrived in Tunisia on September 7th. On September 9th, a second drone strike occurred off the Tunisian coast, which set the deck of the Alma boat ablaze.
A video shared on social media by the UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, shows a cascade of fire falling out of the sky on the flotilla’s deck, and the deck then begins to blaze. Albanese put a caption for the video, which said: “Video evidence suggests a drone — with no light so it could not be seen — dropped a device that set the deck of the Alma boat on fire.”
Hundreds of Tunisians gathered in downtown Tunis on the night of September 24th to wave Palestinian flags and chant in solidarity with Gaza, while calling on Carthage to protect activists on board the flotilla.
“This emergency protest came in response to the barbaric assault on the flotilla in open waters, and it may well happen again,” said Fathi Abaza, a member of Tunisia’s Network Against Normalisation, while the sit-in was taking place.
He described the drone strike as an act of “armed robbery” against a humanitarian operation that is aiming to break Israel’s naval blockade and deliver aid to the people of Gaza.
Flotilla organisers blamed the drone attack on Israel, whose foreign ministry described the aid ship as supportive of Hamas.
In Tunisia, pro-Palestine activists have faced violent suppression. Notably, a physical assault by Carrefour supermarket security guards took place against pro-Palestine activists. Carrefour is a French retailer which is allegedly associated with Israel.
Although Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune reaffirmed his country’s stance against Israel on September 15th, Algeria is believed to rank fourth after the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Egypt in relation to exports to Israel.
The ships of the flotilla set sail from Spanish ports on August 31st, with more than 300 pro-Palestinian activists from 44 nations taking part.
The New Arab, Maghrebi.org
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