KARACHI: A former Pakistani senator is set to join Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and Portuguese lawmaker Mariana Mortágua on a multinational flotilla that would set sail next week, aiming to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza.
The development comes as Palestinians in Gaza continue to suffer from nearly two years of Israel’s war that has killed over 62,000 people, including children, doctors, health workers and journalists, according to Gaza health authorities and the United Nations. The UN has warned of crimes against humanity and reported “catastrophic levels of forced starvation” in the territory, with over two million people at risk of famine.
The fleet of more than 100 vessels, which will converge in the Mediterranean, brings together four regional alliances: Sumud Nusantara from Asia, Sumud Maghrib from Africa, the Global March to Gaza from the Middle East and the Freedom Flotilla Coalition from Europe.
Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, who is affiliated with the Jamaat-e-Islami religious party, said he would be representing Pakistan on the Sumud flotilla, which is deemed as the largest civilian maritime mission ever assembled for Gaza.
“This mission is entirely peaceful, non-violent, and rooted in humanitarian solidarity,” Khan told Arab News over the phone from Tunisia. “The aim is to break the blockade, establish a humanitarian corridor and stop ongoing genocide.”
