STORY: Pro-Palestinian activists gathered at the Sicilian port city of Syracuse to launch a new mission by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition on Sunday (July 13).

Freedom Flotilla's "Handala" ship departed carrying civilian activists including lawyers, doctors and journalists, with supporters holding a large Palestinian flag gathering to send off the ship.

At the port, Freedom Flotilla member doctor Mohammed Mustafa said "the idea of this is not going to feed everyone," but "to bring the attention of the world onto the illegal blockade in Gaza."

Activists were "attempting to do something that world governments should be doing," he added.

Another member of the coalition, Thiago Avila, said the boat would set sail "with the hearts and minds of millions of people behind it.”

Avila, as well as Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, was among the 12 crew members on board the Madleen during the previous Flotilla mission.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: SYRACUSE, ITALY (JULY 13, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all) (MUTE)

1. VARIOUS OF DRONE VIEWS OF PEOPLE GATHERING AROUND 'HANDALA' BOAT DOCKED AT PORT

2. DRONE VIEW OF PEOPLE HOLDING PALESTINE FLAG

3. DRONE VIEW OF PEOPLE GATHERING AROUND 'HANDALA' SHIP

SYRACUSE, ITALY (JULY 13, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

4. VARIOUS OF ACTIVISTS SPEAKING AHEAD OF DEPARTURE

5. PEOPLE APPLAUDING

6. ACTIVISTS, INCLUDING DOCTOR MOHAMMED MUSTAFA, POSING FOR PHOTOS

7. BANNER READING (English) "Stop the genocide"

8. ACTIVIST HOLDING PROSTHETIC LIMB WITH PALESTINIAN COLOURS BOARDING SHIP

9. PERSON FILMING ON THEIR PHONE

10. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTIVIST, DOCTOR MOHAMMED MUSTAFA, SAYING:

“This is a ship that's sailing to Gaza. It's there to attempt to break the illegal siege in Gaza. Now, this is also carrying food, water, medicine, but the idea of this is not going to feed everyone, it's not going to give everyone medicine. What it is going to do is it's going to bring the attention of the world onto the illegal blockade in Gaza. This blockade has been going on for almost 20 years now in Gaza - this illegal siege of Gaza - where food, water and medicine is denied to the people of Gaza. We're seeing images right now of women and children being funnelled into cages and being shot down. This is not what I'm saying, this is what Israeli soldiers are telling their own media that they're doing. And the whole world is silent and watching this going on.”

11. PEOPLE HOLDING PALESTINIAN FLAG

12. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTIVIST, DOCTOR MOHAMMED MUSTAFA, SAYING:

“So, these brave individuals are just civilians. They're not carrying weapons, they're not carrying guns: they are a civilian ship, a British ship, sailing to Gaza to break the siege, to help the one million children that are being starved to death right now. And that's why we need everyone's attention on this ship, because it keeps them safe. They’re attempting to do something that world governments should be doing, which is the ICJ ruling to stop this probable genocide.”

13. PEOPLE GATHERING AROUND 'HANDALA' SHIP

14. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTIVIST, THIAGO AVILA, SAYING:

“We believe that if it was not the Madleen, then the Handala, if it's not the Handala, the next mission that will be bigger: we’ll break the siege of Gaza. Because a regime that depends on starving children to death and bombing hospitals, schools, shelters and residential areas to stay on top of people cannot survive. So, we understand that the whole world is uniting against the genocide, the peoples of the world, the planet of 8 billion people, the vast majority, they are so against this violation, and they want to do something. So, that's why we're here to do something together. This boat goes with the hearts and minds of millions of people behind it.”

15. CREW MEMBER ON BOARD

16. PEOPLE HOLDING PALESTINE FLAG

17. ACTIVIST HANDING OVER ARTIFICIAL LIMB, LEAVING BOAT

18. PEOPLE GATHERING AROUND 'HANDALA' BOAT

19. PEOPLE CHANTING AT TIME OF DEPARTURE

20. VARIOUS OF DRONE VIEWS OF 'HANDALA' BOAT SETTING SAIL TOWARDS GAZA (MUTE)