Two Dundee activists will set off on an aid mission to Gaza this weekend after a deadly raid ended the last attempt, The Courier can exclusively reveal.
Ali El-Awaisi (21) was on the Mavi Marmara, part of a flotilla attempting to run the blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid, when Israeli troops boarded the ship and killed nine passengers.
However, both he and his friend Waseem Mughal (25) will enter the country by road under the Road To Hope banner.
The mission is a case of unfinished business for Ali, both from a political and personal point of view.
“This is the first step to finishing off what I started to do (delivering aid) but that is just one of three points,” he said on Thursday night. “It will also let me assess the situation so I can report back when I get home and I would like to thank the lord provost for his support, both for flying the Palestinian flag and for the next flotilla.
“Thirdly, I will get to see my family. I have six aunties who live in Gaza and a lot of cousins, who I unfortunately didn’t get to see last time. I will also get to go to my grandfather’s grave, which I have never visited.”
The pair will leave London on Sunday and travel through France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya before making the Rafah Crossing from Egypt to Gaza.
They will only deliver medicines which are allowed to pass through the border by the Egyptian authorities, but Ali is confident there will be no drama like the last attempt to get aid into the country.ForewarningHe added, “We have passed our passport information on to the Egyptian government so they know we are coming. Delegates from Scotland got in that way without any problems, so we shouldn’t have any problems either.
“It’s really crucial (the aid gets to Gaza) because there is a lack of medicine in the hospitals, because it has not been allowed through and many people are suffering without it.
“It’s not going to be the same expectation as the last time but I’m optimistic I can finish off what I started to do and we are still preparing for our next flotilla.”
Waseem has never been outside the UK before, but he was so moved after studying the details of the Middle East conflict between Israel and Palestine that he decided to get behind the campaign.
He was heavily involved in organising aid from Dundee to go on the last flotilla that headed for the war-torn region and was determined to head out himself as soon as the opportunity arose.
“This is the first time I’ve left Scotland to go abroad,” he said. “I have just graduated with a degree in politics from the University of Dundee and the situation in Gaza really touched me.
“There are so many human rights violations taking place yet people are still suffering. As free people, we need to help them.”
He added, “I’ve been speaking to lots of Dundonians who have felt very strongly about Gaza and as a good Dundonian I feel I should represent the many who can’t go, because of their jobs, for example. We are doing what they want to do.”
Ali and Waseem’s journey to Gaza with the Road To Hope, a collection of aid convoy specialists, should take around two weeks to complete.
A flotilla carrying more aid from Dundee and the rest of Scotland is scheduled to head to Gaza by sea next spring.
Both Waseem and Ali have pledged to travel on that, alongside family members and local politicians.