Gaza blockade: The next flashpoint

The Free Gaza Movement is planning to step up its challenge to Israel's blockade of Gaza by filling its Rachel Corrie ship with celebrities and journalists and sending it to the Palestinian territory as early as next week. The Irish boat, named after an American member of the International Solidarity Movement who was killed by an Israeli Defence Force bulldozer, had been expected to reach Gaza at the weekend but the organisers yesterday decided to bring it into port in Greece or Turkey. "We will bring her in and put more high profile people on, as many journalists as we can, and send her with at least one support vessel," said Greta Berlin, a spokeswoman for Free Gaza. "People like Bianca Jagger have expressed an interest in the past along with others with a high profile and we will try and see if they really want to."