ICSPR Calls on Free People Around the World to Support the Sailing of the Steadfastness Flotilla (3) by Intensifying Popular Mobilization Demanding an End to Israeli Occupation Crimes and Protection for the Activists on Board
Date: 23 Apr 2026
Press Release
ICSPR Calls on Free People Around the World to Support the Sailing of the Steadfastness Flotilla (3) by Intensifying Popular Mobilization Demanding an End to Israeli Occupation Crimes and Protection for the Activists on Board
The International Commission to Support Palestinian People’s Rights (ICSPR) welcomes the launch of the Steadfastness Flotilla (3) heading toward the Gaza Strip, in one of the broadest international civil initiatives aimed at breaking the unlawful blockade imposed on the Strip, with the participation of around one thousand activists and volunteers from dozens of countries aboard a large maritime flotilla that set sail on April 15 from the city of Barcelona, passing through several European ports on its way to the Gaza Strip.
The Commission affirms that this humanitarian-political initiative reflects the growing global human conscience rejecting Israeli occupation crimes, policies of collective punishment, and grave violations committed against Palestinian civilians. It aims to deliver urgent humanitarian aid, including food, medicine, and water, in addition to enabling medical and humanitarian teams to reach the Strip, and pushing toward the establishment of a permanent humanitarian sea corridor under international supervision to guarantee the flow of relief without restrictions.
ICSPR points out that this action comes in the context of the ongoing genocide crimes, systematic starvation policies, and comprehensive humanitarian collapse in the Gaza Strip, which clearly reflects the failure of the international system to enforce respect for the rules of international humanitarian law and to ensure effective protection for civilians.
The Commission stresses that the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip constitutes a crime of collective punishment prohibited under the provisions of the Geneva Conventions and international human rights law, and amounts to an ongoing international crime that requires accountability and prosecution without delay.
In the same context, ICSPR welcomes the escalating international and popular mobilization, including the international conference and the large demonstration that took place today in Brussels in front of the headquarters of the European Union, with the participation of hundreds of diplomatic and political figures from dozens of countries, calling for the opening of a humanitarian maritime corridor to Gaza, reflecting the growing official and popular international pressure to end the blockade and stop the ongoing crimes against Palestinian civilians.
The Commission also notes that these initiatives come against the backdrop of dangerous precedents, as occupation forces intercepted previous blockade-breaking flotillas, most recently in late 2025, when an international flotilla comprising dozens of ships was intercepted and international activists, including Greta Thunberg, were detained, in a grave violation of international law and freedom of navigation under the law of the sea, which heightens fears of repeated attacks against peaceful civil initiatives.
While expressing its deep appreciation for the participants in the Steadfastness Flotilla and solidarity activists around the world, the Commission values their courage and determination to break the state of silence and international paralysis, and affirms that the voice of global solidarity has become part of the struggle for justice and human dignity for the Palestinian people.
ICSPR warns against any attempt to intercept or target this humanitarian convoy, or to repeat previous attacks that constituted a grave violation of international law and freedom of navigation and that require international accountability. ICSPR calls on the free people of the world to accompany this maritime mobilization through events and demonstrations in public squares and spaces, in a way that creates a popular and political umbrella of support and protection for the participants and enhances the chances of success for this humanitarian initiative.
The Commission also calls on the international community, including the United Nations, the third High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions and the Convention on the Prevention of the Crime of Genocide, and the free people of the world, to work toward providing international protection for the Steadfastness Flotilla and ensuring its safe passage, to press for the opening of permanent humanitarian corridors under international supervision and the lifting of the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip, and to act to strengthen the path of international justice and hold occupation leaders accountable before international courts for the crimes committed against Palestinian civilians.
