Explainer: What is the Global March to Gaza all about?

Thousands of activists from crossed the globe are marching to the Gaza Strip to effort to interruption Israel’s suffocating siege and gully planetary attraction to the genocide it is perpetrating there.

Approximately 1,000 radical participating successful the Tunisian-led agelong of the Global March to Gaza, known arsenic the Sumud Convoy, arrived successful Libya connected Tuesday morning, a time aft they departed the Tunisian capital, Tunis. They are present resting successful Libya aft a afloat time of travel, but bash not yet person support to transverse the eastbound portion of the North African country.

The group, which mostly comprises citizens of the Maghreb, the Northwest African region, is expected to turn arsenic radical articulation from countries it passes done arsenic it makes its mode towards the Rafah crossing betwixt Egypt and Gaza.

(Al Jazeera)

How volition they bash it? When volition they get there? What is this each about?

Here’s each you request to know:

Who’s involved?

The Coordination of Joint Action for Palestine is starring the Sumud Convoy, which is tied to the Global March for Palestine.

In total, determination are astir 1,000 people, travelling connected a nine-bus convoy, with the purpose of pressurising satellite leaders to instrumentality enactment connected Gaza.

Sumud is supported by the Tunisian General Labour Union, the National Bar Association, the Tunisian League for Human Rights, and the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights.

It is coordinating with activists and individuals from 50 countries who are flying into the Egyptian capital, Cairo, connected June 12, truthful that they tin each march to Rafah together.

Some of those activists are affiliated with an umbrella of grassroots organisations, including the Palestinian Youth Movement, Codepink Women for Peace successful the United States and Jewish Voice for Labour successful the United Kingdom.

How volition they scope the Rafah crossing?

The convoy of cars and buses has reached Libya. After taking a little rest, the program is for it to proceed towards Cairo.

“Most radical astir maine are feeling courageousness and choler [about what’s happening successful Gaza],” said Ghaya Ben Mbarek, an autarkic Tunisian writer who joined the march conscionable earlier the convoy crossed into Libya.

Ben Mbarek is driven by the content that, arsenic a journalist, she has to “stand connected the close broadside of past by stopping a genocide and stopping radical from dying from hunger”.

Once Sumud links up with chap activists successful Cairo, they volition caput to El Arish successful Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula and past embark connected a three-day march to the Rafah crossing to Gaza.

Tunisians question the Palestinian emblem arsenic they stitchery successful Tunis aboriginal connected June 9, 2025, earlier the departure of the Global March to Gaza to interruption the siege connected the Strip [AFP]

Will the activists look obstacles?

The convoy has yet to person support to walk done eastbound Libya from authorities successful the region. Libya has 2 rival administrations, and portion the convoy has been welcomed successful the west, discussions are inactive ongoing with authorities successful the east, an authoritative from the convoy told Al Jazeera connected Tuesday.

The activists had antecedently told The Associated Press quality bureau they bash not expect to beryllium allowed into Gaza, yet they anticipation their travel volition unit satellite leaders to unit Israel to extremity its genocidal war.

Another interest lies successful Egypt, which classifies the agelong betwixt El Arish and the Rafah borderline crossing arsenic a subject portion and does not let anyone to participate unless they unrecorded there.

The Egyptian authorities has not issued a connection connected whether it volition let the Global March to Gaza to walk done its territory.

“I uncertainty they would beryllium allowed to march towards Rafah,” a longtime Egyptian activist, whose sanction is being withheld for their safety, said.

“It’s ever nationalist information first,” they told Al Jazeera.

If the convoy makes it to Rafah, it volition person to look the Israeli service astatine the crossing.

Why did the activists take this approach?

Palestine supporters person tried everything implicit the years arsenic Gaza suffered.

Since Israel’s genocidal warfare began 20 months ago, civilians person protested successful large capitals and taken ineligible enactment against elected officials for abetting Israel’s wide sidesplitting run successful Gaza.

Activists person sailed connected respective humanitarian assistance boats towards Gaza, trying to interruption a stifling blockade that Israel has imposed since 2007; each were attacked oregon intercepted by Israel.

In 2010, successful planetary waters, Israeli commandos boarded the Mavi Marmara, 1 of the six boats successful the Freedom Flotilla sailing for Gaza. They killed 9 people, and 1 much idiosyncratic died of their wounds later.

The Freedom Flotilla kept trying arsenic Gaza suffered 1 Israeli battle aft another.

Israel’s existent warfare connected Gaza prompted 12 activists from the Freedom Flotilla Coalition to acceptable sail connected committee the Madleen from Italy connected June 1, hoping to unit satellite governments to halt Israel’s genocide.

However, the activists were abducted by Israeli forces successful planetary waters connected June 9.

From left: Suayb Ordu, Baptiste Andre, Greta Thunberg, Thiago Avila, Marco Rennes, and Yasemine Acar, six of the Madleen activists, earlier departure from Catania, Italy, connected June 1, 2025 [Fabrizio Villa/Getty Images]

Will the Global March to Gaza succeed?

The activists volition try, adjacent if they are beauteous definite they volition not get into Gaza.

They accidental lasting idle volition lone alteration Israel to proceed its genocide until the radical of Gaza are each dormant oregon ethnically cleansed.

“The connection radical present privation to nonstop to the satellite is that adjacent if you halt america by sea, oregon air, past we volition come, by the thousands, by land,” said Ben Mbarek.

“We volition virtually transverse deserts … to halt radical from dying from hunger,” she told Al Jazeera.

How atrocious are things successful Gaza?

Since Israel began its warfare connected Gaza connected October 7, 2023, it has strangled the nutrient and supplies entering the Palestinian enclave, engineering a famine that has apt killed thousands and could termination hundreds of thousands more.

Israel has carpet-bombed Gaza, sidesplitting astatine slightest 54,927 radical and injuring much than 126,000.

Legal scholars previously told Al Jazeera the suffering successful Gaza suggests Israel is deliberately inflicting conditions to bring astir the carnal demolition of the Palestinian radical successful full oregon successful portion – the precise explanation of genocide.

Global outrage has grown arsenic Israel continues to termination civilians successful thousands, including children, assistance workers, medics and journalists.

Since March, Israel has tightened its chokehold connected Gaza, wholly stopping assistance and past shooting astatine radical lining up for what small assistance it allows in, starring to uncommon statements of condemnation from Western governments.