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The ‘Handala’ ship has resumed its aid mission to Gaza, just two hours after the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) announced yesterday that it had lost contact with the vessel following a brief communication blackout.
The coalition announced via Telegram that the ship has resumed its course and is now less than 349 nautical miles (646 kilometers) away from Gaza.
“For about two hours, our Freedom Flotilla boat’s communications were interrupted and drones were observed near the boat, raising serious concerns of a potential attack,” it said.
The group called on supporters to “keep your eyes on the ‘Handala’ and on Palestine and continue pressuring your governments and media to break the illegal siege on Gaza.”
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition earlier said it had lost contact with the ‘Handala’ amid fears of an attack after drones were spotted near the aid ship.
One of the volunteers aboard the Handala ship, activist Tan Safi, explained in a brief social media video that the blackout was caused by a global Starlink outage.
“Some experts are investigating it and said this was unusual,” Safi noted. “It’s not the first time Elon has worked with Israel, but this was most likely a global disruption.”
“Handala” is a new vessel of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza as part of the group’s ongoing effort to break Israel’s blockade.
The “Handala” vessel, which departed from Siracusa, Italy, is carrying 21 international activists on board set sail July 13 toward Gaza
Of various nationalities, including seven Americans, among them the Jewish-American actor Jacob Berger, Member of the European Parliament Emma Fourreau, and French lawmaker Gabriel Catala.
The boat carries life-saving humanitarian aid and a message of solidarity from people around the world refusing to stay silent as Gaza is starved, bombed, and buried under rubble.
The mission marks a renewed effort to break the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip and protest what organizers and international organizations describe as the ongoing genocide against Palestinians.
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