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Viva Palestina Arabia Right To Return convoy to Gaza leaves London on 22 April


More than three years since Israel's Operation Cast Lead, which killed over 1,400 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip the siege remains.

The changes sweeping Egypt and the Middle East bring the promise of finally lifting that blockade and of further steps to relieve the suffering of the Palestinian people. But promise alone will not end the suffering now, nor address the reasons for it.

That is why Viva Palestina Arabia is organising an aid convoy to again break the siege on Gaza. It is looking to the future. That is why it will be carrying construction equipment to rebuild the schools, clinics, public buildings and homes which have been destroyed both by Israel's attacks and by the effects of the ongoing siege.

Its purpose is also to highlight in each country it passes through the reasons for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the wider suffering of the Palestinian people. Peace talks are stalled, yet illegal Israeli settlement building in the West Bank continues, as does the driving out of non-Jewish inhabitants of Jerusalem.


Conditions for millions of Palestinian refugees in the camps in Palestine and neighbouring countries remain appalling. This convoy will be highlighting the rights of those refugees, enshrined in international law and in UN resolutions. They have an inalienable right to return to the homes they were driven out of.

This convoy, which comes after the great siege-breaking efforts of Viva Palestina in Britain and of attempts to break the siege by sea, is therefore scheduled to reach Gaza on 15 May, Nakba Day, on which Palestinians the world over commemorate the catastrophe that forced so many of them, now a majority, into exile.

Last year saw international protests on Nakba Day which brought the fundamental reasons for the humanitarian crisis in Palestine and in the camps to world attention.

With this convoy, VPA will be part of another international effort to focus on these vital questions.

The flag of Palestine has become a leitmotif for humanitarians and those who care about justice the world over. Now, there are attempts to reverse that development, to encourage people in the West, the Middle East and around the world to avert their eyes from Palestine.

This convoy is about the return to Palestine - the right of Palestinians to return and returning our attention to this central issue by contributing to the construction, the rebuilding, of a Palestine for all Palestinians, with Jerusalem recognised as its capital.

You can join us, contribute to aid and vehicles and support this mission.

Dates to Remember

2nd Feb 2012 Registration Opens
7th April 2012 Registration Closes
15th April 2012 compulsory training day (date to be confirmed)
21st April 2012 All vehicles to be at the Storage Unit of VPA. All volunteers to attend for final sign off, paperwork checks, handing out of T-shirts and grouping of teams etc. This date is to be confirmed.
22nd The convoy leaves from London.

Please click here to read more about the convoy requirements and to register
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