Dispatch from Sumud Flotilla: Sailing into ‘yellow zone’ en route to Gaza

Mediterranean Sea – Everyone gathered connected the apical platform of a Global Sumud Flotilla vas loaded with humanitarian supplies for Gaza and volunteers determined to present it.

Security protocols successful lawsuit of an exigency were reviewed and enactment into action: beingness vests, caput counts and designated muster points.

They were grooming for scenarios that could hap connected immoderate vas – fire, idiosyncratic falling overboard, collision.

But this grooming was antithetic due to the fact that determination was different scenario.

The volunteers were instructed connected however to rise their hands successful the lawsuit that Israeli soldiers intercepted the vessel, boarded it and detained them. The absorption is connected acting successful a nonviolent way, successful accordance with their mission.

The flotilla was approaching the “yellow zone” aft it departed from Sicily, Italy – the portion successful planetary waters betwixt Italy and Cyprus wherever Israeli attacks are imaginable – and it was clip to practise however to enactment if an onslaught occurred.

‘Old propaganda strategy’

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs precocious described the humanitarian flotilla, which is sailing to interruption the Israeli siege connected the radical of Gaza, arsenic a “jihadi flotilla” and claimed it has ties to Hamas.

The alleged "Flotilla to Gaza" is openly backed by jihadi Hamas.

In Hamas’s ain words: “We telephone for mobilizing each means to enactment the Global Steadfastness Flotilla heading to Gaza.”

This is not humanitarian. This is simply a jihadist inaugural serving the panic group’s agenda. pic.twitter.com/vciWdnTswC

— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) September 18, 2025

Earlier this month, arsenic the flotilla acceptable sail from Spain, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir announced that helium wanted to state the humanitarian activists “terrorists” and detain them accordingly.

Flotilla steering committee subordinate Saif Abukeshek, speaking to journalists online connected Saturday, said specified allegations are “psychological warfare” and added: “The propaganda is an aged strategy.”

In the training, a coordinator tells the gathered group: “We person to determine collectively whether we volition respond oregon whether idiosyncratic should intervene if soldiers statesman to bushed 1 of us.”

The question was met with soundlessness but could not beryllium avoided. Holding a bullhorn, the coordinator took the initiative.

“If I americium dragged oregon beaten, I don’t privation immoderate of you to respond oregon archer the soldiers to stop. Please respect my decision.”

The bullhorn was passed around. One by one, the volunteers repeated the words. By the 3rd volunteer, the operation had been reduced to 2 words: “the same”. All the volunteers echoed it.

The strategy was conceived to forestall further violence. Any absorption – adjacent asking Israeli soldiers to halt – could provoke them to much violence.

One unpaid summed it up: “If you respond oregon talk up portion being beaten, you volition not lone enactment your ain information astatine hazard but besides that of the others – and you volition interruption the volition of the group.”

Another told Al Jazeera: “We cognize wherefore we are present and the risks we person taken.”

Volunteers person archetypal assistance grooming arsenic they sail towards Gaza. Every vas has a medic oregon trained archetypal assistance responder. On September 16, 2025 [Mauricio Morales/Al Jazeera]

Mental and carnal pressures

The delays and challenges the flotilla has faced person taken a toll connected its organisers and volunteers alike.

Drone attacks portion astatine larboard successful Tunisia, method difficulties faced by boats ill-suited to the precocious seas and the wide difficulties inherent successful organising an underfunded civilian inaugural to sail to Gaza person enactment unit connected everyone.

Every idiosyncratic connected committee besides has to bash a nighttime watch, scanning the skies each nighttime for much drone attacks portion their companions rest.

When asked what keeps them going, each of them cites the impulse to enactment to assistance the radical of Gaza, who are suffering bombardments, starvation and nonaccomplishment arsenic Israel wages warfare connected them.

They cognize they are sailing into risky waters due to the fact that Israel has intercepted each past flotillas, adjacent sidesplitting 10 radical connected committee the Mavi Marmara a decennary ago.

The boats had acceptable retired for Sicily from Tunisia connected Tuesday with a reduced fig of radical connected committee aft hard decisions were made.

There were much radical wanting to beryllium connected a flotilla vessel than determination was capableness connected the vessels, particularly arsenic immoderate boats failed method inspections – the organisers worrying astir their quality to header with the unpredictable quality of the Mediterranean.

Final goodbyes successful the larboard of Bizerte, wherever immoderate of the volunteers were reshuffled to caller ships oregon were not continuing the ngo connected committee [File: Mauricio Morales/Al Jazeera]

Lists were work successful Bizerte, Tunisia. Crews were reshuffled among the boats, and tears flowed arsenic volunteers who had forged beardown affectional ties said their goodbyes.

Their portion connected committee the ngo was implicit for now, but their enactment for the flotilla bound for Gaza would proceed connected land.

Some talked to the coordinators to effort to get their spots back. Others waited with their colleagues connected the boats, helping retired until they had to instrumentality to a edifice to await their flights backmost home.

“Please enactment this [Palestinian] emblem determination connected the boat. It has been successful my friend’s model for years,” said Marcin, a Polish unpaid surviving successful Norway who was among those chopped from the unit list.

Eventually, everyone boarded their assigned ships and met their crews. All hands were connected platform to cleanable and hole the vessels for the adjacent limb of the travel to Italy. Some of the volunteers person sailing experience, and others with nary erstwhile sailing acquisition learned rapidly to assistance out.

After a fewer days successful Italy, the boats person acceptable retired again, sailing done the yellowish zone, getting ever person to the reddish zone, wherever the information multiplies 100 nautical miles (185km) from the Gaza shore.

And the drills continue.

Volunteers speech astatine the extremity of the time connected committee a Flotilla vessel, beingness vests prepared for immoderate maritime emergency, onslaught oregon interception. On September 18, 2025 [Mauricio Morales/Al Jazeera] (Restricted Use)