(MENAFN) A ship from the Global Sumud humanitarian flotilla, named Mikeno, reportedly entered Gaza’s territorial waters on Thursday morning.

The flotilla’s tracking system showed the vessel crossing into Gaza’s waters, but the signal was lost when the boat was about 9.3 nautical miles from the shore. It remains unclear whether the vessel was intercepted by Israeli forces, managed to avoid them, or if the loss of contact was due to a technical issue.

Ramazan Tunc, a member of the Turkish delegation within the Global Sumud Flotilla, declared that the Mikeno had effectively broken the blockade. “This means that the blockade has been broken in practice. I want to share with you the joy of bringing our ship Mikeno into Gaza, which for years, people said could not be broken, and which Israel has blockaded with great force from land and sea,” he said.

He further stressed that the achievement carried symbolic weight, remarking: “Israel is a paper tiger,” and adding: “Most importantly, we have broken the blockade in our minds. I greet everyone, hoping that the days when we will embrace our brothers and sisters in a free Gaza, in a Gaza where the blockade has been broken, are near.”

Another flotilla participant, Tulay Gokcimen, explained that there had been no attack on the vessel but that activists discarded their phones after an Israeli boat approached. She said the Mikeno managed to continue because of its smaller size.

Meanwhile, Noelia Fernandez, one of the fleet’s Gaza organizers, told Spanish media that the Mikeno was reported to be about 7 miles from Gaza’s coast, less than an hour from arrival.

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