An aid ship that has been docked in Cyprus for close to a month has finally set sail for Gaza, taking almost 200 tonnes of aid in a pilot project to open a new sea route for aid to a population on the brink of famine.
A video showed the Open Arms boat departing the Mediterranean island’s southern port of Larnaca at an unknown time early on Tuesday. Government officials in Cyprus had said the exact timing of the vessel’s departure would not be released for security reasons.
However, maritime tracking sites showed the Open Arms in the eastern Mediterranean, slowly heading for Gaza. The boat is towing a barge containing flour, rice and protein as well as water and medicines – provisions that are desperately needed in the besieged coastal strip.
While the journey usually takes about 15 hours, the aid boat and its accompanying barge were travelling at about 3.7 knots, making a timeframe for the voyage of up to two days more likely.Credit: theguardian.com
