The Free Gaza Movement (FGM) is a coalition of human rights activists and pro-Palestinian groups formed to break Egypt and Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip and publicise the situation of the Palestinians there. FGM has challenged the Israeli–Egyptian blockade by sailing humanitarian aid ships to Gaza. The group has more than 70 endorsers, including Desmond Tutu and Noam Chomsky.
A blockade has been imposed on the movement of goods and people in and out of the Gaza Strip following Hamas's takeover in 2007, led by Israel and supported by Egypt. The blockade's current stated aim is to prevent the smuggling of weapons into Gaza, although previously stated motivations have included exerting economic pressure on Hamas. Human rights groups have described the blockade as illegal and a form of collective punishment as it restricts the flow of essential goods, contributes to economic hardship, and limits the freedom of movement for Gaza's residents. The blockade and its effects have led to the territory being described as an "open-air prison".
IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation or İHH is a conservative Turkish NGO, whose members are predominantly Conservative Turkish Muslims, active in more than 120 countries.
Zouhair Yahyaoui was the first cyber-dissident to be pursued and condemned in Tunisia, a country that is often rated at the top of lists of Internet policing by independent third-party sources such as the OpenNet Initiative. He was the nephew of the judge Mokhtar Yahyaoui, who was also a vocal critic of the Tunisian regime and its lack of respect for judiciary processes. His cousin Amira Yahyaoui founded the NGO Al Bawsala.
The Gaza flotilla raid was a military operation by Israel against six civilian ships of the "Gaza Freedom Flotilla" on 31 May 2010 in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea. Nine of the flotilla passengers were killed during the raid, with thirty wounded. Ten Israeli soldiers were wounded, one seriously. The exact sequence of events is contested, in part due to the IDF's confiscation of the passengers' photographic evidence. The flotilla, organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the Turkish Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (İHH), was carrying humanitarian aid and construction materials, intending to break the Israeli-Egyptian blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Reactions to the Gaza flotilla raid on 31 May 2010 ranged from fierce condemnation to strong support for Israel.
Many legal assessments of the Gaza flotilla raid were published subsequent to the event. International law experts differed over the legality of the action by Israel. The force necessary to respond to violent resistance and whether the force that was used was proportionate were disputed.
The Cambodian-flagged Irish MV Rachel Corrie was part of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla that sailed to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid in 2010. The ship was unable to join the other six ships in the flotilla because of mechanical problems that forced it to undergo repairs in Malta. The other six ships were confronted by a raid on 31 May 2010 during which nine activists were killed by Israeli naval forces.
The Gaza Freedom Flotilla, organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the Turkish Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (İHH), was carrying humanitarian aid and construction materials, with the intention of breaking the Israeli-Egyptian blockade of the Gaza Strip. In normal circumstances, aid is brought to Israel to be inspected and then transferred to Gaza.
The Turkel Commission was an inquiry set up by Israeli Government to investigate the Gaza flotilla raid, and the Blockade of Gaza. It was led by Israeli retired Supreme Court Judge Jacob Turkel. The other initial members of the commission were former President of the Technion and military expert, Amos Horev, and professor of international law, Shabtai Rosenne, who died in September 2010. The probe was overseen by two International observers: William David Trimble, former Leader of the Northern Irish Ulster Unionist Party and Northern Irish First Minister, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and Canadian former military judge Ken Watkin.
Mohamed Moncef Marzouki is a Tunisian politician who served as the fifth president of Tunisia from 2011 to 2014. Through his career he has been a human rights activist, physician and politician. On 12 December 2011, he was elected President of Tunisia by the Constituent Assembly.
Vittorio Arrigoni was an Italian journalist and activist. He worked with the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement (ISM), through which he arrived in the Gaza Strip in 2008. He maintained a website called Guerrilla Radio and also published a book about his experiences in Gaza City during the 2008–2009 Gaza War between Hamas and Israel. In 2011, he was abducted and murdered by a group of Salafi jihadists. The Hamas government, which identified the perpetrators as Palestinian and Jordanian affiliates of al-Qaeda, subsequently initiated a manhunt and arrested the accused suspects during a raid on the Nuseirat refugee camp. Arrigoni was the first foreign national to have been involved in such an incident in the Gaza Strip since the kidnapping of British journalist Alan Johnston in 2007.
"Freedom Flotilla II – Stay Human" was a flotilla that planned to break the maritime blockade of the Gaza Strip by Israel by sailing to Gaza on 5 July 2011. Ultimately, the sailing did not take place.
Ship to Gaza is a Swedish organization that aims to break the blockade of the Gaza Strip by delivering humanitarian aid from Scandinavia to Gaza.
The governance of the Gaza Strip since the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007 has been carried out by Hamas. The Hamas government in Gaza was led by Ismail Haniyeh from 2007 until February 2017, when Haniyeh was replaced as leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip by Yahya Sinwar. As of November 2023, Yahya Sinwar continues to be the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Hamas control of the northern part of the Gaza Strip came to an end in January 2024, according to Israeli government statements.
Ismail Haniyeh is a Palestinian politician who is seen as the overall political leader of Hamas, the current chairman of Hamas’s political bureau; as of 2023, Haniyeh lives in Qatar.
National reactions to the Gaza flotilla raid on 31 May 2010 ranged from support to strong condemnation of Israel. Those supporting Israel generally also expressed concern for the loss of life and injuries to civilians. Criticism included the death and injuries of civilians, the disproportionate response, and the execution of the raid.
The Women's Boat to Gaza (WBG) was an initiative by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition in 2016 to challenge the Israeli naval blockade of the Gaza Strip. The WBG consisted of an entirely female crew and one ship, Zaytouna-Oliva. It started from Barcelona on 14 September 2016 and visited Ajaccio, Corsica and Messina, Sicily along the way. On 5 October 2016, the Israeli Navy intercepted the Women's Boat to Gaza and detained its crew members, who were taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod. The activists were subsequently deported to their home countries.
Israel's stated plan was to "welcome" the flotilla participants and hand them letters with a message from the Prime Minister's Office: "Perhaps you meant to sail somewhere else nearby – Syria, where Assad's regime is massacring his people every day, with the support of the murderous Iranian regime." [10] 
UN-ESCWA: The UN Undersecretary-General and Executive Secretary of UN-ESCWA Rima Khalaf issued a statement condemning Israel's detention of former Tunisian president Moncef Marzouki. Khalaf concluded "What president Marzouki and his companions did is a practice of a right and a response to the call of conscience to lift the injustice and suffering of 1.8 million civilians under siege in Gaza. What Israel did is aggression and offence". [11] 
ISESCO: ISESCO condemned seizure of Freedom Flotilla Gaza 3 vessel carrying humanitarian supplies to the people of Gaza Strip. It called on the international community to put pressure on the Zionist regime to promptly release all people on board and guarantee their safety including Moncef Marzouki. [12] 
Tunisia: Tunisia condemned the interception by the Israeli occupation forces of one of the vessels of the Freedom III flotilla and the President Moncef Marzouki. Tunisia called on Israel, in a Foreign Ministry statement, to immediately release all participants in the flotilla, holding the Israeli occupation responsible for their safety and that of President Moncef Marzouki. [13] 
Qatar: The State of Qatar strongly condemned the Israeli occupation forces interception of Freedom Flotilla III heading to Gaza and the detention of former Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the officials are following with concern the development of the situation in the Gaza Strip, the continuation of the Israeli violations and cutting off humanitarian supplies for Gaza's population, calling for quickly release of Marzouki and the rest of the participants. The statement called on the international community to take immediate action to stop the Israeli abuse and lift the siege on the Gaza Strip. [14] 
Sweden: The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned Israel for its intervention on the Swedish leader vessel, Marianne, in international waters during its participation in the Third Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The statement asked Israel to lift the blockade in Gaza immediately. [15] 
