Unions start flotilla: Solidarity for Gaza demanded!

Unions start flotilla: Solidarity for Gaza demanded!

Cédric Caubère, Secretary of the CGT of Haute-Garonne, boarded the Voilier Wahou of the Global Sumud Flotilla on September 11, 2023, traveling in international support to the Gaza Strip. This decision to support the flotilla was made by the CGT's confédéral office, indicating the union's growing commitment to human rights and peace in the region. According to humanite.fr, the CGT sees the situation in Gaza as increasingly critical and sees government inaction as sharing responsibility for the crimes Israel.

Caubère describes his participation in the flotilla as a great responsibility and emotional burden, which he considers necessary. The flotilla is part of a broad coalition of people, including organizers, humanitarians, doctors and artists, who promote the idea of ​​human dignity and the power of nonviolent action, according to information from globalsumudflotilla.org.

International coalition and solidarity

The Global Sumud Flotilla came together over the summer to pursue a coordinated international strategy based on decades of Palestinian resilience and international solidarity. Caubère emphasizes the need for European states to sanction Israel to end the situation and protect their citizens. This is in line with the call of many European unions who are demanding the government open a humanitarian corridor and dismantle the blockade.

The flotilla is reinforced by ships from Sicily and Greece and has already experienced two attacks that are seen as a sign of pressure on Israel and the United States. Caubère calls for a stronger commitment from the CGT to promote international solidarity and take action against imperialist structures.

Humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip

The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is alarming. War has been raging for 22 months and more than two-thirds of the area has been destroyed by Israeli attacks. The infrastructure is in ruins and many people have lost their livelihoods. According to zdfheute.de, 96% of people in the Gaza Strip have no income and food prices are overpriced. These dire conditions make it difficult to distribute aid, which is often intercepted by criminals and sold on the black market.

The complexity of the situation is compounded by high fees for withdrawing money and the lack of acceptance of electronic payments. Aid organizations are trying to meet the population's extreme food and medical needs, but they report chaos in the delivery of aid. Christof Johnen from the German Red Cross highlights the desperation, especially among children, and calls for local help to better control the distribution.

There are also allegations from the Israeli government that Hamas is systematically stealing aid supplies. Aid organizations face the challenge of ensuring that aid actually goes to those in need, which is made even more difficult by mistrust and opaque conditions in the Gaza Strip.