Hundreds of activists from 54 countries are planning to converge on Egypt next week to launch a mass march to the Rafah crossing, demanding an end to the blockade on Gaza and the “ongoing genocide against Palestinians.”
Speaking to Al Manassa, Saif Abukeshek, one of the organizers of the “Global March to Gaza 2025”, said that the initiative is yet to receive an official response—approval or rejection—from Egyptian authorities regarding their planned march to the Rafah border crossing.
According to the published call for participation, demonstrators from around the world are scheduled to gather in Cairo on June 12.
Organizers emphasize that the movement is civic, apolitical, independent, and unaffiliated with any political ideology or religion, describing it as fully peaceful and not aimed at forcibly breaching any barriers or borders.
A global voice of protest
Abukeshek, head of the Global Coalition Against the Occupation in Palestine, said participants from countries around the world are expected to join, seeking to amplify a global voice of opposition to the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.
“We’ve submitted formal requests via Egyptian embassies abroad,” said Abukeshek, “despite some friendly meetings that showed understanding of the humanitarian need, we haven’t received an official response—either approval or rejection—yet.”
Among the participants is content creator and human rights advocate Hannah Claire Smith, who told Al Manassa she decided to join the march after a conversation with one of its organizers, learning that it was a response to a Palestinian call for solidarity.
“I’ve been posting about the crisis in Gaza for 19 months, but at a certain point, it didn’t feel like enough. I felt a moral responsibility to show up in whatever way I could.” she said.
Smith, a US citizen, expressed anger at her government’s policy, holding it directly accountable for what is happening in Gaza.
“The United States isn’t just complicit in the genocide in Gaza and Palestine—it’s underwriting it.” she said. “Our tax dollars are funding the bombs, the bulldozers, the bullets, and the blockade. Every shipment of weapons, every veto at the UN, is a choice to prolong the suffering of an entire people.”
For Smith, the march represents a personal stand against her country’s complicity and a way to physically show solidarity with the Palestinian people, not just symbolically. She emphasized that the demonstrators are not attempting to enter Gaza themselves.
“Our role is to stand in solidarity…drawing international attention and demanding action,” she added.
The US remains Israel’s largest weapons supplier since the start of the war on Gaza. In March, Washington approved a $3 billion sale of bombs, demolition equipment, and other weapons to Israel.
This was the second time in a month that the Trump administration invoked emergency powers to fast-track arms sales to Israel, bypassing congressional oversight.
Abukeshek noted that the main issue is not the lack of aid but rather “the continued genocide and international complicity that allows Israel to close crossings and use hunger, medicine, water, and electricity as tools of war.”
Egypt closed the Rafah crossing in May 2024 after Israeli forces seized the crossing from the Palestinian side during their incursion into Rafah. Cairo later announced it would refuse to coordinate with the occipation army and instead demanded its withdrawal.
While Abukeshek asserted that the movement aims to pressure authorities to open the crossings fully and allow aid in, Smith outlined three key goals for her participation: an immediate end to the blockade; unrestricted access for food, medicine, and resources, noting that “2.2 million people are at risk of famine;” and recognition of the Palestinian right to self-determination.
She also called for accountability for war crimes through support for investigations by the ICC and the ICJ.
Abukeshek said the initiative is coordinating with other movements such as the “Freedom Flotilla” and Tunisia’s “Steadfastness Convoy,” explaining that while each has its own identity, they share the aim of breaking the blockade.
He added that there is direct coordination with the independent labor committees in Gaza, which issued the initial call for the movement.
Last month, an Israeli drone reportedly targeted a vessel near Malta belonging to the Freedom Flotilla attempting to break the blockade, although organizers and Maltese authorities confirmed that no injuries were reported among the activists.
The Freedom Flotilla launched another vessel earlier this month, now joined by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, with renewed efforts to challenge the blockade of Gaza.
Challenges ahead
According to Abukeshek, march participants have already booked their travel to Egypt. “We hope that everything goes smoothly and that this humanitarian mission faces no obstacles,” he said, expressing hope that a spirit of goodwill will prevail to ensure its success.
He acknowledged that the challenges they're facing are “positive.” Given the large turnout from 54 countries, significant coordination is required to respond to inquiries and manage technical hurdles and time zone differences.
“Any challenges we face are nothing compared to what the people of Gaza endure every day,” he said.
Dr. Huseyin Durmaz, a Türkiye-based physician and member of the International Health Initiative, told Anadolu Agency that the campaign will launch from Egypt on 12 June.
According to him, participants will gather in Cairo before heading to the city of Arish. They plan to begin their march to the Rafah crossing on 13 June, hold rallies on 14 June, and stage a large protest on 15 June.
Durmaz said the group intends to set up protest tents until June 20. “We will make our voices heard to the world in Rafah for two days,” he said.
He confirmed that they have reached out to Egyptian officials via diplomatic channels, but have yet to receive an official permit.
On her part, Smith too considers the biggest challenge to be uncertainty, “especially around permits and border logistics.”
“There’s also the physical challenge of marching in desert heat,” she continued, but acknowledged that these are “small sacrifices compared to what Palestinians in Gaza are enduring every day.”
In early March, Israel suspended the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza “until further notice” following the first phase of a ceasefire agreement. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office at the time said that “Israel will not allow a ceasefire without a release of our hostages. If Hamas persists in its refusal, there will be additional consequences.”
Israel then launched a new offensive on Gaza in the same month.
