August 2008: SUCCESSFUL: 44 people from 17 countries successfully broke the Gaza blockade by sailing to it from Cyprus in two small boats, Free Gaza and Liberty. Organizers say they were tracked by Israeli naval vessels for half of the journey and the boats’ navigation systems were jammed and tampered with. They were welcomed by thousands of Palestinians lining the shore.
October 2008: SUCCESSFUL: 27 doctors, lawyers and human rights workers from 12 countries broke the blockade successfully aboard the Dignity. Passengers included Palestinian lawmaker Mustafa Barghouthi, Nobel laureate Mairead Maguire, and Italian opera singer Joe Fallisi, who delivered Gaza’s first ever opera concert.
November 2008: SUCCESSFUL: 24 passengers including 11 European parliamentarians carried more than one ton of medical supplies broke the blockade aboard the Dignity.
December 8 2008: SUCCESSFUL: A “students” delegation, headed by professors from the London School of Economics and the British Committee for Universities for Palestine successfully broke the blockade and and successfully brought out 11 Palestinian students who had been accepted to universities abroad, but were unable to exit Gaza due to the Israeli-Egyptian siege
December 18 2008: SUCCESSFUL: Dubbed the “Qatari delegation”, it included envoys from the Qatari Eid charity, making Qatar the first Arab country to contribute to breaking the siege
December 29 2008: UNSUCCESSFUL: In response to Israel’s war on Gaza, the Free Gaza Movement sent 3 tons of medical supplies as emergency aid to Gaza aboard the Dignity. Passengers included 3 surgeons, Dr. Elena Theoharous, a member of the Cypriot Parliament, and Cynthia McKinney, former U.S. congresswoman and Green party presidential candidate. Israeli warships surrounded the the Dignity, then rammed it three times without warning. The ship did not sink, and made its way to Lebanon.
January 2009: UNSUCCESSFUL: The Spirit of Humanity, a new ship, included 36 passengers from 17 countries including doctors, journalists, activists and lawmakers. The ship was forced to turn back by the Israeli navy, which threatened to fire at the boat if it continued towards Gaza.
June 2009: UNSUCCESSFUL: including former US representative Cynthia McKinney and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire as well as five Bahraini activists. The ship was siezed by Israel and towed to the port of Ashdod. All passengers were detained by Israel including McKinney and the Bahrainis. Bahraini officials subsequently made a taboo-breaking trip to Israel to collect their country’s citizens.
