Grounded In Greece: Gaza convoy eyes Monday departure

ATHENS: A pro-Palestinian flotilla hopes to leave Greece early next week to challenge Israel’s sea blockade of the Gaza Strip despite the arrest of the American captain of one of the vessels, organisers said on Saturday. The convoy of cargo and passenger boats carrying volunteers from countries including the United States, Canada, France and Spain was due to depart at least a week ago but has been held up amid allegations of sabotage sponsored by Israel. “Monday will be a day of action where we plan to continue sailing,” Adam Shapiro, one of the organisers, told reporters in Athens.  A boat ferrying mostly American activists, “The Audacity of Hope”, tried to leave left Perama port near Piraeus on Saturday.





Published in The Express Tribune, July 3^rd, 2011.