August 2008 Sailing
The first sailing took place in early August 2008. It was organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the International Solidarity Movement. Many of the latter's members had been barred from entering Israel on security grounds. According to the Free Gaza Movement's Web site, the group intended for the boat to cross the Israeli-declared "special security zone" to deliver 100 hearing aids to a Palestinian charity as a form of humanitarian aid. A story in Israel-based Haaretz said the organizers were attempting to provoke a clash with the navy that would end with arrests. A spokesman for the group said, "We hope that the Israeli government will have some wisdom. To drag us in and arrest us and say somehow we are a danger is absurd."
They raised $300,000 from private donations and purchased two vessels. The group originally planned to depart from Piraeus on August 1, 2008, stopping at several Greek islands, and to then sail from Cyprus to Gaza on August 5. Organizers of Free Gaza told interviewers that they were not attempting to sail from Egypt or via Egyptian waters because they "did not want to make a political statement" hinting that Egypt disagreed with the plan. Cypriot officials expressed concern about the boat departing from their shores but said they could not prevent it.
On August 23 the ships arrived in Gaza. The Israeli Navy did not stop them but both boats had great difficulty with their communications, a problem they blamed on jamming by Israel in an attempt to prevent them from getting to Gaza.
Read more about this topic: Free Gaza Movement
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