For a month now we have been training to send 10 tons of aid with precious medicines to Gaza offered by the company Medochemie and today Friday the cargo is on its way to its destination, said Dr. Eleni Theocharous
On its way to Rafa is the humanitarian-pharmaceutical aid collected by the Volunteer Doctors-Cyprus organization, after, as it states in a statement, terrifying difficulties and bureaucratic obstacles that seemed insurmountable were overcome and the container with ten tons of medicines after the mediation of the Egyptian Red Crescent , is handed over to the Palestinian Red Crescent to reach its destination.
The Organization emphasizes that the medicines sent are the only medical aid that Cyprus has sent so far to the suffering Palestinian people.
The Honorary President of the organization Volunteer Doctors-Cyprus (formerly Doctors of the World), Eleni Theocharous, who was contacted by KYPE, expressing satisfaction that the effort is finally succeeding, emphasized the significance of the fact that the arrival of pharmaceutical aid to the suffering Palestinians coincided with the anniversary of the sinking of the vessel "Dignity" which broke the embargo and carried medicine and baby food to the Gaza Strip.
For a month now we have been training to send 10 tons of aid with precious medicines to Gaza offered by the company Medochemie and today Friday the cargo is on its way to the destination, he added.
The Organization in the announcement states that the cargo will be received by the Egyptian Red Crescent under the supervision of the Cyprus Embassy in Cairo and will be immediately transferred from Porto Said to Rafah (transit).
Volunteer Doctors announced that they will continue providing humanitarian aid with a new shipment of baby food and is undertaking a baby food collection campaign. In the next few days, details will be announced regarding the process and the way to collect the food.
Also in the announcement, the Organization expresses its thanks to the donors of the aid and to all those who with their tireless efforts helped to send the aid.
Sinking of the vessel "DIGNITY"
Based on a post by the Honorary President of the Volunteer Doctors on social media, the vessel "Dignity" with the flag of Gibraltar, loaded with medicines/baby food, breaking the embargo, departed from the port of Larnaca to Gaza on the evening of 12/28/2008. At 3:00 in the morning of December 29, the pursuit of him by 4 Israeli gunboats of 70 n.m. began. from Haifa in a heavy storm.
As reported, Israeli naval gunboats flanked the vessel and chased it for half an hour, then torpedoed it, completely destroying the bow and rendering it unruly in the open sea. 75 nautical miles west of Haifa.
Those on the boat were offered assistance to reach the port of Tire by a French navy vessel, the UNIFIL frigate. "Dignity" sank.
On the boat were 3 Cypriot women volunteers (Eleni Theoharous, Martha Paisi and Katia Christodoulou), two retired English Orthopaedists from Exeter and Birmingham, some Irish activists of the Free Gaza Movement, two war correspondents one from CNN and one from Al JAZEERA and the small crew from Ierapetra, all unarmed.