A cargo ship carrying Lebanese activists and supplies will set sail on January 3 for the besieged Gaza Strip in an attempt to break an Israeli blockade, organizers said Tuesday, dpa reported.
The European-flagged ship will carry power generators and food to Gaza. It will sail from southern Lebanon to the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus before heading to Gaza, one of the organizers, Hani Suleiman, a lawyer and professor, said.
The passengers include activists from civil society groups as well as journalists, Suleiman said.
It will be the first time a ship carrying people and goods from Lebanon, a country still officially at war with Israel, will attempt to make the trip.
Israel and Egypt closed Gaza's borders after Hamas seized control of the territory in June 2007. Since November, Israel has tightened its blockade on Gaza to put pressure on Hamas and other militants to halt rocket fire on Israeli border towns.