"Aid Ship Departs Cyprus for Gaza in Pilot Project Amid Israel-Hamas War"

The Open Arms, a rescue vessel owned by a Spanish NGO, has departed from Cyprus with almost 200 tons of food for Gaza in a pilot project to establish a new sea route for aid delivery. The mission, funded mostly by the United Arab Emirates and organized by U.S.-based charity World Central Kitchen, aims to establish a maritime highway of boats and barges continuously delivering aid to Gaza, which has been under an Israeli naval blockade since 2007. The initiative includes building a landing jetty in Gaza using material from destroyed buildings and rubble, and if successful, it would signify the first easing of the blockade.