The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza has deepened as Israeli airstrikes, drone attacks and ground assaults continue to devastate communities, leaving tens of thousands dead and entire neighbourhoods flattened.
The Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), a civilian initiative aimed at breaking Israel’s blockade on Gaza, confirmed on Monday that one of its main vessels, the Family Boat, was attacked by a drone in Tunisian waters. Sailing under a Portuguese flag, the boat carried six passengers, including GSF Steering Committee members. While all onboard survived, the ship sustained significant fire damage to its main deck and storage compartments. An investigation is underway, but activists believe the strike was a deliberate attempt to intimidate and derail the flotilla’s mission.
Mounting Humanitarian Toll
“This aggression will not stop us. Our mission to stand in solidarity with Gaza continues,” the GSF said in a statement. Hundreds of activists from more than 40 countries have joined the flotilla, carrying vital humanitarian supplies such as food, medicine, and baby formula.
Since the escalation of violence in October 2023, international rights groups estimate that over 62,000 Palestinians have been killed, two-thirds of them women and children. According to UN Women, more than 28,000 women and girls have lost their lives in the latest war. Humanitarian agencies report that at least one child is killed every hour, while more than 40,000 young people have been left with life-altering injuries.
These figures exclude thousands more who have died from untreated wounds, starvation, or being buried under rubble, as Israel’s 18-year blockade continues to strangle Gaza’s healthcare and supply systems.
Gaza residents describe scenes of unimaginable horror. “We’re afraid that the Israeli invasion will get even deeper into Gaza City. Nowhere in Gaza is safe — bombs chase residents from their homes, from their displacement centres, and even from their tents,” said one survivor.
Life in the Rubble
Journalist Rasha Abou Jalal, displaced with her family, spoke from a makeshift tent: “Like so many Palestinians, I now live on the rubble. The merciless military machine is bearing down on us, getting closer every day. We cannot leave, but survival here is almost impossible.”
She described new Israeli tactics — the deployment of robotic vehicles loaded with explosives, remotely detonated in crowded neighbourhoods. “They are erasing Gaza block by block,” she said.
Another Gaza mother, Rifka Eid, captured the spirit of survival through Sumud — the Palestinian principle of steadfast resistance. “To exist here is resistance. Every demolished home rebuilt, every olive tree harvested under fire, is Sumud. Even staying rooted on our land, despite genocide, is resistance,” she said.
Israeli Strategy of Destruction
Reports from the ground indicate that Israel has intensified the use of retrofitted armored personnel carriers packed with explosives, alongside relentless aerial bombardments and bulldozing operations.
Defense Minister Israel Katz previously warned Gaza could “turn into Rafah and Beit Hanoun,” threatening that “the gates of hell will open.”
That warning, activists say, has become reality. Civil defense teams are overwhelmed, unable to reach bombed areas due to constant strikes. Displacement is widespread, with over one million people ordered to evacuate, many of them pushed into famine conditions.
South African and Global Solidarity
The crisis has drawn strong reactions across the world, including South Africa, where activists draw parallels between the Palestinian struggle and the anti-apartheid movement. “Our history of resistance compels us to stand with Palestine,” said spokesperson Firoza Mayet of the Global Sumud Flotilla.
The flotilla has urged world governments, including South Africa, to offer protection to its delegates and ensure the mission’s success by enforcing international law. Activists also called on the United Nations to invoke the “Uniting for Peace” Resolution to establish a protection force for Gaza and hold Israel accountable for war crimes.
A World Watching
For over 700 days, the war on Gaza has been livestreamed into homes worldwide. The images of lifeless children pulled from rubble, families forced into tents, and hospitals reduced to ruins have provoked outrage. Yet military support from the United States, Germany, and other Western nations continues to flow to Israel.
In South Africa, activists insist that silence is complicity. “We cannot stand by while people are starved, bombed, and erased from their land. Our struggle against apartheid is intertwined with Gaza’s struggle,” Mayet added.
The Global Sumud Flotilla is preparing to set sail again in the coming days, despite attacks. For its participants, the act of sailing is itself resistance — a refusal to accept Gaza’s isolation and a demand that the world act to end what they describe as a genocide.
As Gaza endures another day of bombardment, the message from activists remains clear: “Break the siege now.”
