The Mavi Marmara flotilla vessel
The Mavi Marmara flotilla vesselFlash 90

The mayor of the southern Italian town of Palermo renamed a section of the port in honor of the late archterrorist Yasser Arafat.

Mayor Leoluca Orlando made the announcement last week after the arrival of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla at the port, from where it will leave in an attempt to reach Gaza, the New Matilda reported. New Matilda editor Chris Graham is on one of the flotilla boats.

Prior to its last stop in Palermo, the flotilla visited 15 European ports over two months to garner support.

From 2008 through 2016, international activists have sailed 31 boats to challenge Israel's control over the waters near its coast.

In May, Israel’s Navy stopped a boat carrying 17 Gazans who attempted to violate Israel's maritime borders.

In 2010, Israeli commandos killed nine Turkish citizens in clashes on the Mavi Marmara, which sailed with five others from Cyprus in an attempt to violate Israel's maritime borders in support of the Hamas-ruled territory.