ADDS REMARKS BY TURKISH, QATARI OFFICIALS
By Serdar Dincel, Serkan Avci, Mustafa Unal Uysal and Yakup Saglam
ISTANBUL/MERSIN C(AA) - A ship carrying humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip sailed Wednesday from Türkiye to the coastal enclave, according to officials.
A total of 1,908 tons of humanitarian aid materials with food, health, hygiene and shelter supplies loaded onto the Türkiye-Qatar Gaza Goodness Ship, departed from the Mersin International Port, the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said in a statement.
Türkiye has delivered 52,016 tons of various humanitarian aid materials to Gaza by 13 aircraft and 10 ships, it added.
The ship was seen off in a ceremony at the Mersin International Port dock.
Turkish Deputy Interior Minister Munir Karaloglu said Israel committed crimes against humanity and genocide by launching military offensive in Gaza.
"We hope to achieve a permanent cease-fire as soon as possible. Let our Gazan brothers continue to live in peace in their own land and hometown," he said, adding that Türkiye will continue to stand by Palestine's "just cause" in the international arena.
Qatari Minister of State for International Cooperation Lolwah Rashid Al Khater said providing aid is a humanitarian duty.
“They (Israeli forces) seized the Rafah border gate. They continue to block the delivery of humanitarian aid. Not to mention killing and forcing people to migrate. There is an unprecedented drama going on in the region,” she said.
She said she appreciated, on behalf of Qatar, all efforts undertaken and carried out by “brother Türkiye.”
“We cooperate with Türkiye on many issues that can benefit millions around the world. We are extremely proud of the level that the developing strategic relations between the state of Qatar and the Republic of Türkiye have reached,” she added.
Israel has pounded Gaza in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas which killed less than 1,200 people.
Nearly 34,800 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, and 78,100 injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.
Nearly seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
*Writing by Gozde Bayar