On Sunday, April 12, the international delegations of the Global Sumud Flotilla 2026 began their voyage with humanitarian and political objectives, in a scenario marked by changes from the previous year and a growing escalation of conflicts in the Middle East. The International Socialist League (ISL) is once again actively participating in the mission to Gaza.
By Ruben Tzanoff
The voyage began with an exciting farewell
The boats with delegations from 52 countries anchored at the Moll de la Fusta sailed out from Barcelona without yet entering international waters. As announced, “…we will have to wait for the storm coming from Menorca to pass, all our boats are ready to continue to Italy…where more boats will join the fleet”.
The final rally synthesized the feeling of solidarity with the Palestinian cause, with two days of workshops, music and art. The activities complemented the image of the participants from different countries who had been trained conscientiously for this departure during the previous days. The message of departure was very clear, with humanitarian objectives, for the Palestinian cause and appealing for the mobilization on the ground to be expressed in strength, both for Palestine and in support of the GSF.
A different situation
As in last year’s Flotilla, the crews will have to adjust the pace of the voyage to the weather, the sea and the condition of the small ships they sail. Changes in the political situation will also be a determining factor.
GSF 2025 took place in the context of a massive and widespread mobilization process in support of the Palestinian people, particularly Gazans. As the genocide and ethnic cleansing carried out by the State of Israel intensified, millions of people, mainly youth, students and women, occupied universities, boycotted Zionist interests and mobilized. Sectors of the working class, with dock workers at the forefront, carried out important strikes that marked a concerning path for the powers that be.
This reality challenged the governments and was key to stopping the bombings, but in no way solved the historical and present problems of Zionist colonization, also causing confusion about the need to continue and deepen the protest movement.
Confusions to overcome
Solidarity with Palestine has not disappeared and will surely be expressed again as strongly as it has been throughout history. However, the deceitful Israel-US-Hamas pact legalized genocide, ethnic cleansing, territorial occupation and served as a basis for them to move forward with the annexation of the West Bank, the invasion of southern Lebanon and attacks on Iran. As a result, current protest actions are not of the same magnitude as those with which last year’s GSF sailed.
War, a determining factor
Another fundamental element is the escalation of war, which directly involves US imperialism and its gendarme State of Israel, attacking Iran, Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and other countries. These developments were not present during the previous Flotilla and make each of this year’s GSF stopovers to be accompanied by precise evaluations, democratic consultations and conscientious decisions regarding the safety of the mission, both in relation to its partial and final destinations.
Mobilizing for Palestine, the attacked countries and the Flotilla
These facts make it necessary to respond with determination to the GSF’s call for mobilizations and actions, both to protect it and to demand that governments take side in its favor. Last year’s process combined a mutual feedback: the GSF grew out of the mobilizations that it nourished, in a political symbiosis of great global impact that needs to be recreated.
The ISL is once again an active participant
The ISL is once again part of the Flotilla, this time with comrade MP Cele Fierro and comrade Dr. Raul Laguna, both from the MST of Argentina. With the support on land of Socialismo y Libertad (SOL), Gruppe ArbeiterInnenmacht (Germany) and Alejandro Bodart, coordinator of the ISL, at the farewell in Barcelona, with the Partito Comunista Dei Lavoratori (Italy) and with all the organizations that integrate the ISL across the five continents.
We sail to bring hope ashore and organize solidarity in everyday life. As socialists in the Flotilla, we call for mobilizations, blockades and strikes. Only then can we protect the ships and put pressure on the governments. As with the previous Flotilla, we will report on all developments until the end of the mission.
Free Palestine and the Middle East
With total commitment, the participants of the Flotilla place their bodies on the line for this mission, without losing sight of what is happening in Gaza and across the Middle East. In this sense, there will be no nautical mile without Cele and Raul denouncing imperialism and Zionism for their atrocities in Gaza, the West Bank and all Palestine, without raising: Israel out of Lebanon and that Zionism must be defeated as a cause of humanity that requires active solidarity and unity of action, demanding governments to break relations with the State of Israel, on the road to a fundamental solution that passes through the Socialist Revolution in the Middle East, so that workers govern, opening the way to a single, secular, democratic, non-racist and socialist Palestine.
You may also be interested in: “ISL Statement: Israel out of Lebanon. Defeating the Zionist monster is a cause of all humanity. Active solidarity with the Lebanese people”.
