RAFAH, Gaza Strip: British MP George Galloway arrived in Gaza yesterday at the head of an aid convoy to protest Israel’s genocidal aggression against the Hamas enclave and support the Palestinian resistance.
The staunchly pro-Palestinian parliamentarian said he was “overwhelmed with happiness” to arrive in Gaza on the birthday of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and in the wake of Israel’s massive offensive at the turn of the year.
“I have entered Palestine many times but the most emotional of these is after the 22-day genocidal aggression against the Palestinian people,” he told reporters, referring to the Israeli war that came to a halt on Jan. 18.
Galloway added that he planned to meet “the heroes of Palestine’s resistance, the government of Palestine and the people of Palestine.”
The convoy set out from London last month but was temporarily halted in Egypt when authorities learned that it was also bearing non-medical aid destined for the impoverished coastal territory’s 1.5 million residents.
While waiting to cross in the Egyptian town of Arish near the border, the convoy was vandalized and pelted with stones, according to organizers.
Galloway said Egyptian authorities had forced the group to send some of the aid into Gaza via Israel but that it was carried by the Egyptian Red Crescent and not accompanied by any of the convoy participants. “I have never discussed anything with Israel in my life and I will not start now,” Galloway said.
The convoy included 12 ambulances and a fire engine and carried aid worth more than one million pounds ($1.4 million).
