Spanish boats arrived at Tunisia’s Sidi Bou Said Port on Sunday to take part in the Global Sumud Flotilla, an international initiative seeking to break Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.

The flotilla, which set sail from Barcelona on August 22, is carrying around 150 activists from Tunisia, Turkey, Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Another group left the Italian port of Genoa last week. Organizers say the ships will head toward Gaza on Wednesday.

At a press conference in Tunis, Diego Elvira, spokesman for the Spanish delegation, said the mission is focused on “breaking the (Israeli) blockade and creating a humanitarian corridor.”

“We are here to support the same cause and to denounce decades of genocide by the occupying state,” Elvira said. He added that despite facing storms and challenges during the seven-day voyage from Spain, “none of this compares to what we will face on our next journey, and all that we endure does not compare to a single day of what the Palestinian people endure.”

The flotilla’s organizers stress that their mission aims to highlight the worsening humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

International monitors declared famine in northern Gaza last month, while Israel has kept the enclave sealed off since March, allowing in only limited aid as its military continues assaults on civilians waiting for food.

Since the war began in October 2023, nearly 64,400 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s health authorities. Much of the enclave lies in ruins, with widespread famine threatening survival for the besieged population.

“The racist Zionist regime needs to be defeated,” Elvira said, underscoring the determination of participants in the convoy.