French Actress Adèle Haenel Has Announced She Is Joining The Global Sumud Flotilla To Sail To Gaza
“Our goal is to bring humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza and break the illegal siege,” Haenel wrote. “Humanity is still here. Free Palestine.”
French actress Adèle Haenel, who had stepped away from the film industry for political reasons, has joined the Global Sumud Flotilla to break Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip.
On Sept. 7, 36-year-old Haenel said on Instagram that the situation in Gaza “compelled” her to start an account on the platform.
She announced she would join the Global Sumud Flotilla, the largest fleet of civilians boat ever attempting to break Israel's long siege on Gaza, from Tunisia.
“Our goal is to bring humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza and break the illegal siege,” she wrote. “Humanity is still here. Free Palestine.”
Haenel, known internationally for her role in the 2019 film,"Portrait of a Lady on Fire", arrived in Tunisia on Sept. 7 and spent two days training for the operation.
She has a history of activism.
In 2020, she stormed out of the 45th César Awards, protesting the honor given to French director Roman Polanski, who was facing allegations of sexual assault.
In 2023, she announced she was stepping away from the film industry for “political reasons,” criticizing what she called the “general complacency” toward sexual aggressors like French actor Gérard Depardieu and director Polanski.
Haenel is one of the hundreds of activists, including Sweden’s Greta Thunberg and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, Mandla Mandela, who are trying to break Israel's siege and ultimately its genocide in Gaza..
Two flotilla boats, including its main boat, the Family, were attacked in Tunisian waters by drones on Sept. 7 and 8.
The Global Sumud Flotilla has blamed Israel for the attacks, saying they are an orchestrated attempt to derail its mission.
However, the activists and volunteers aboard say they remained undeterred and are expected to sail from Tunisia towards Gaza on Thursday, Sept. 11.
Israel’s genocide in Gaza has now killed more than 64,500 people, more than 83% of whom are civilians, and Gaza City is officially in a man-made famine created by Israel.
Flavie Chen
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Cherry Mohamed
