International solidarity with besieged Gaza is gaining momentum despite a Western media blackout. Amira Howeidy reports on the progress of the second Viva Palestina aid convoy as it crosses Europe It's Tuesday, 15 December and the Viva Palestina convoy of international activists and politicians, who started their journey in the UK on 5 December, finally have a chance to relax. Not only is the weather a little warmer in Turkey, but so is the convoy's reception. On the course of its journey through Western Europe, taking in Belgium, Germany, Austria and Italy, this life line to besieged Gaza -- at 45km long and 10km wide the world's largest open prison -- was flatly ignored by the mainstream media. Ten days from now marks the first anniversary of Israel's 22-day war on the Gaza Strip. During Operation Cast Lead the Israeli army's aerial and artillery bombardment killed over 1,400 Palestinians, most of them civilians, including 400 children. More than 5,300 were injured and maimed. Israel systematically destroyed Gaza's infrastructure, including the Islamic University, hospitals, schools, mosques and UN quarters. The densely populated Strip, home to 1.5 million Palestinians, faced a barrage of chemical attacks in the form of white phosphorous shells which burn through skin and flesh all the way to the bone. After leaving Turkey, where local NGOs managed to raise funds for 70 more aid vehicles to Gaza, Viva Palestina (VP) will cross the border to Syria, then on to Lebanon and Jordan. VP, which will by then comprise 110 vehicles accompanied by 420 activists, will then be ferried across the Red Sea to Nuweiba, from where the convoy will drive to the Egyptian- Gaza border town of Rafah, arriving on 27 December. Depending on the flexibility of the Egyptian authorities, the convoy will cross to Gaza to deliver medical and humanitarian supplies and other forms of aid to the Palestinians. In doing so it will break the strict siege Israel, with the blessings of the international community, has imposed on Gaza since June 2007. The brainchild of British MP George Galloway, VP was born during a 100,000 strong demonstration in London on 10 January against the bombing of Gaza. Galloway had the idea of sending an aid convoy to Gaza and came up with the name Viva Palestina. The first VP convoy left the UK on 14 February 2009, after raising more than �1 million for humanitarian aid in less than five weeks. The convoy comprised 110 vehicles intended for use in Gaza, including a fire engine, 12 ambulances, a boat, and trucks full of medicines, tools, clothes, blankets and gifts for children. The 5,000-mile route passed through Belgium, France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, the final hurdle. The convoy arrived in Gaza via the Rafah crossing on 9 March 2009, accompanied by 180 extra trucks of aid donated by Libya's Gaddafi Foundation. But the Egyptian authorities refused to allow the supplies to pass to Gaza. They were left in the town of Arish, where medical and food supplies expired or perished. The idea was soon picked up across the Atlantic. In July a US Viva Palestina convoy of 200 American activists, accompanied by Galloway, flew to Egypt after raising more than $1 million from fundraising events. They purchased 47 vehicles and medical supplies from Egypt. Once again the local authorities refused to allow the vehicles through, arguing that the convoy had failed to obtain the required permits. This time, though, the activists managed to get medical supplies across the border. According to UK-based VP spokesman Zahir Berawi, the 47 vehicles -- which had been detained in Alexandria's free zone -- were shipped to Turkey last Sunday to join the current VP convoy. In a telephone interview with Al-Ahram Weekly on Tuesday, Berawi said that the Turkish IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation, now VP's Turkish arm, organised and funded the shipment, thus raising the number of VP vehicles that will be donated to Gaza to 127. After two weeks of intense lobbying for VP, IHH managed to raise funds for a further 70 vehicles (buses, minibuses, ambulances, light trucks and passenger cars). Now VP will leave Turkey with 197 vehicles. Berawi, who accompanied the first VP convoy last February to March, was witness to the obstacles imposed by the Egyptian authorities. VP's current route, he says, was designed to "avoid" anything that might provoke the Egyptian authorities, which meant giving Cairo a wide berth and avoiding any association with Egyptian activists or politicians. "We are very determined to get the supplies to Gaza. This is our priority and we will not allow any obstacles to stand in the way of our humanitarian message, nor do we want to challenge the Egyptian government on any level," he said. Berawi, a 48-year-old London-based Palestinian activist, was studiously diplomatic: "We are confident that the Egyptian regime also wants to shed light on the war and mark its first anniversary, so I think we share the same objective." The $4 million worth of vehicles and supplies will, says Berawi, soon be joined by international "public figures". He did not disclose their names. In Turkey, VP will be joined by Malaysian, Turkish and US activists. Many of the convoy's volunteers have been blogging and Tweeting their thoughts during the journey. Joti Brar, a British political activist, trade unionist "and mom" has been actively providing her followers with information on the social media website Twitter. What becomes clear is how the VP volunteers' spirits lifted once they left Western Europe, travelling through Greece, where they were greeted by local mayors and MPs and provided with free pizzas from Pizza Hut, and on to Turkey. As Al-Ahram Weekly was going to press on Wednesday, Brar was Tweeting euphorically about the "royal" reception the convoy had received in Turkey. "AMAZING reception at border. Big rally with solidarity orgs and TV crews right at crossing gate. Turkey is with us!" read her Tweet on 15 December.
