Charity ship loaded with aid sets sail for Gaza

A ship carrying 200 tonnes of aid for Gaza left Cyprus yesterday in a pilot project to open a sea route to deliver supplies to a population aid agencies say is on the brink of famine.

The charity ship Open Arms was seen sailing out of Larnaca port in Cyprus, towing a barge containing flour, rice and protein. The mission was funded mostly by the UAE and organised by US-based charity World Central Kitchen (WCK).

The journey to Gaza takes about 15 hours but a heavy tow barge could make the trip take considerably longer, possibly up to two days. Cyprus is just over 200 miles northwest of Gaza.

The US military said its vessel, the General Frank S. Besson, was also en route to provide humanitarian relief to Gaza by sea.

With aid agencies saying deliveries into Gaza have been held up by bureaucratic obstacles and insecurity since the start of the war on October 7, and even Israel’s allies demanding easier aid access to the enclave, attention has shifted towards alternative routes including sea and air drops.

Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said yesterday that negotiators seeking a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which controls Gaza, were not close to a deal.

Washington had said for weeks that it hoped for a truce deal in time for the Ramadan Muslim holy month that began this week, but it has so far failed to materialise with the sides unable to agree terms to halt fighting, free hostages and bring in aid.

Yesterday’s sea supply mission was the culmination of months of preparation by Cyprus, the EU member state closest to the conflict. It is keeping a wary eye on upheaval in the Middle East.