British activist Ruth Herbert is nearing the end of her 6.5-month walk from the UK to Istanbul to raise donations for Palestinians, reported Anadolu Agency.

Herbert, 52, left her home in Arnside on May 2 and crossed the UK, France, Switzerland, Italy, Slovenia, Montenegro, Albania, North Macedonia and Greece before reaching Türkiye.

She will conclude her 6.5-month journey in Istanbul on Saturday.

So far, she has raised around £50,000.

Speaking to Anadolu, Herbert said the walk was inspired by her desire to do more for Palestinians beyond attending protests.

“What inspired me to do this was just seeing the suffering of the Palestinians and feeling that I wanted to do something. Obviously writing to our governments and going to demonstrations in the UK is quite common but I just felt it wasn't enough and I wanted to support the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians and I thought of this to raise money,” Herbert said.

She explained that her goal was to bring hope amid despair and meet people around Europe and the world who “supported Palestinians in their struggle because I just didn't know what else to do.”

Herbert added that walking also helped her process the horrors coming out of Gaza and contributed to healing, both for herself and for Palestinians.

“Because I just didn't know what else to do. I just thought well it doesn't matter what we do as long as we do something and I had done one long walk before but not too long, a month, but I had enjoyed it and I just thought being outside and making movement helps you process things mentally. I think watching all the horror from coming out of Gaza has scarred us all, the whole of humanity and I wanted to walk to help myself but also to help heal the Palestinians both physically and mentally.”

- ‘We Need Peace and Justice for Palestine’

“Collectively, if we all do something, we create a wave and then there's more people ... people do feel very strongly about what's happening in Palestine ... any action that we take and builds community around the world to know that you're not alone in your feelings about the devastation in Palestine,” she underlined.

Emphasizing that change does not happen overnight, she added: “We have to hold on to hope and we have to keep fighting because any sort of resistance struggle or movement takes time and we have to be in it for the long haul and we have to put effort in and it doesn't happen overnight but we have to stick with it.”

“I think that our humanity is tied to Palestine and how we treat Palestine is how will affect the whole planet and the whole world and how we cannot let a people be wiped out and have their home taken from them and stand by idly and we have to keep fighting for justice, and this is why I say we need peace and justice for Palestine.”

Herbert described the journey as physically challenging but a great honor, saying she passed through 12 countries, met many people, and witnessed numerous acts of generosity, such as free meals and accommodation.

“I'm really pleased that I'm nearly at my goal of £50,000 that I've raised for medical aid for Palestinians so if anybody wants to keep to donate there'll be a link and then I might be able to reach my goal for raising that money as well,” the activist said.