Israel has ‘no right to prevent us from sailing in international waters. They have no right to maintain this blockade,’ Irish politician Paul Murphy tells Anadolu
Ahead of Sunday’s planned departure from Tunis, Irish politician Paul Murphy said the Global Sumud Flotilla will sail for Gaza in open defiance of Israel’s blockade, declaring the voyage lawful and vowing to press ahead despite the risk of interception.
“Our flotilla is entirely legal, and any attempt by Israel to stop us is illegal,” Murphy told Anadolu in an interview from Tunisia. “They have no right to prevent us from sailing in international waters. They have no right to maintain this blockade.”
Murphy, an elected member of Ireland’s lower house for the People Before Profit party, is part of what organizers describe as the largest flotilla yet, aiming to bring hundreds of participants from 44 countries on about 50 vessels to Gaza.
Boats from Tunisia will link up with others that left Barcelona and Italy. The mission was originally set to sail from Tunisia on Sept. 4, but adverse weather in the Mediterranean delayed departures.
Carrying food and basic medical supplies, the flotilla is expected to reach Gaza in roughly 10 days, Murphy said.
The lawmaker said he feels a responsibility to act for Palestinians because of his public platform and knowledge of the situation.
“I think anyone who knows should seek to do whatever they can to help, to put pressure on the Israeli state to stop the genocide, to end the siege, to end the blockade and also to pressure their own governments to act to stop the genocide instead of being complicit in it,” he said.
Murphy said the situation in Gaza resonates with Irish history, citing experiences of imperialism, colonialism and man-made famine under British rule.
- Non-violent mission
While waiting in Tunis for vessels from Spain and Italy to arrive, participants underwent training for different scenarios, including how to respond if Israeli forces board the boats.
“Our mission is not a military mission – it is non-violent. We will not be resisting any Israeli attempt to take over our boats,” he said.
He noted what happened to more recent attempts to break the Gaza blockade.
“They attacked with a drone a boat a few months ago, but most of the boats they effectively occupy in international waters,” he said. “They take them over and they take them against our wishes to Port Ashdod, and then put people in an Israeli prison for days or a week or more.”
Despite the risks, he said that 28,000 people volunteered to join the flotilla.
“It’s really incredible, and it speaks to this global movement which the flotilla is really a part of, and which I think ultimately, with the resistance of Palestinian people, will be successful … And ultimately, we will have a free Palestine,” he said.
Murphy also stressed that the dangers they face are insignificant compared to what people have experienced daily since October 2023 in Gaza, where Israel has now killed over 64,200 Palestinians, wounded nearly 161,600 more, and created a famine that has claimed hundreds more lives, including children.
“We just need to be prepared and be calm about lots of different scenarios,” he said.
- ‘Ultimately, there will be justice’
Murphy said he took part in an earlier flotilla that attempted to break the blockade in 2011. Before reaching Gaza, he said, Israel cut off communications and surrounded the vessel with large ships.
“Then they send ships with soldiers on them, and maybe they hit your boat with water cannons, and then they board your boat with these armed soldiers,” he said.
Before that departure, their boats were sabotaged and Israel pressured Greek port authorities not to allow boats to leave, he added. As a result, the mission was delayed for a few months before they sailed on Irish and Canadian ships.
“We were held in detention in Israel for a week before eventually being deported. So, I expect, or it’s certainly likely, that we’ll have a similar sort of experience,” he acknowledged.
Calling Israel’s blockade illegal and the war on the strip genocidal, Murphy said states have a legal obligation under the Genocide Convention to act to prevent and try to stop genocide while it is taking place.
“We are doing everything we can to try to pressure Israel, to pressure our own governments. I think many people in the West are utterly horrified and have had their eyes open about the real character of their governments and the character of this imperialist system that we live in,” he said.
“Ultimately, we will win, and there will be justice … even if it doesn’t seem like it today.”
