Donna and Darlene are joining more than 40 other people from 17 different countries sailing from Cyprus to Gaza on August 5, to challenge Israeli control of the open-air prison called Gaza. The passengers range in age from 22 to 83 and include clerics, professors, lawyers, doctors, engineers, and human rights activists. Among the crew are a Holocaust survivor and a survivor of the Palestinian Nakba - the forcible expulsion of more than 700,000 Palestinians from their lands to create Israel.

They sail with the common bond of focusing the world's attention on the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza and its collapsing economy - which are direct results of Israel's ongoing occupation and continuing control over Gaza's land borders, air space and territorial waters. Their sail, which marks the sixty-year anniversary of the Nakba and is endorsed by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and others, is also intended to be the beginning of a ferry service between Gaza and Larnaca.

The Free Gaza movement has been invited to Gaza by the Red Crescent Society for the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Medical Relief Society, Palestinian Centre for Human Rights and the Gaza Community Mental Health Program.

For a full list of endorsements please visit: http://www.freegaza.org/index.php?language=EN&module=endorse

Individuals and organizations can receive regular updates on the progress of the boats by signing up to The Friends of Gaza email list: https://lists.riseup.net/www/subscribe/gazafriends

See interviews with two Free Gaza organizers:
Dr. Paul Larudee at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kP5R5dC60c
Greta Berlin at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M57-aCEKKNY

Hear interviews with other Free Gaza boat passengers at
http://mp3.wtprn.com/Brouillet08.html
Darlene Wallach, Kathleen Wang, Hedy Epstein, and Greta Berlin
Mary Hughes-Thompson, Bill Dienst, and David Halpin

The Free Gaza Movement
405 Vista Heights Rd.
El Cerrito, CA 94530 USA;
Contact: friendsofgaza [at] gmail.com
http://www.freegaza.org
1 510-232-2500

Donna Wallach is an anti-zionist, social justice, and environmental
justice activist. She is 57 years old, lives in San Jose, California
in USA and is Jewish Eastern-European descent. She is sailing on the
boat because she is outraged that all of historic Palestine has been
occupied by the illegal, apartheid state of Israel for over 60 years
and the Nakba continues to happen every day - home demolitions,
Palestinians being expelled against their will, olive and other trees
cut down, agriculture destroyed, education denied, medical denied,
entry to Palestine denied to Palestinians and supporters, and tens of
thousands of innocent Palestinians have been killed, maimed and
injured throughout the years. It has to end and it has to end now.

=====================================================================

Darlene Wallach is an anti-zionist, social justice, and environmental
justice activist. She is 57 years old, lives in San Jose, California
in the United States of North America and is of Jewish
Eastern-European descent. Darlene is joining people from 16 countries
to sail to Gaza to break the siege of Gaza. The apartheid state of
Israel commits crimes against humanity and war crimes on a daily
basis against the Palestinians. These crimes are ongoing since before
1947 ("The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine" by Ilan Pappe). The total
siege of Gaza is unconscionable, appalling, horrific. Since not one
single country or government is stepping up to the plate, we the
people of conscience are bringing world attention to Gaza and perhaps
a break in the total siege of Gaza.

Darlene Wallach spent almost two months in Palestine May - July 2002:
She spent about a week in Gaza, a few days in Ramallah, and a night
and a day in Balata Refugee camp where she was detained and arrested
with seven other internationals. All eight were ordered deported by
the minister of the interior. They had witnessed collective
punishment of the Palestinians by the Israeli Occupation Force (IOF)
soldiers. Although Darlene and two other internationals fought the
deportation order and were the first people to be let out of prison
on bail, the three were eventually deported.

Given there is no guarantee Israel will allow peace and justice
activists entry to Palestine, Darlene is choosing to participate with
the Free Gaza Movement in a non-violent resistance action.