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University of New Brunswick biology professor Jeff Houlahan is set to travel to Egypt next month to join the Global March to Gaza, an international initiative calling for humanitarian access through the Rafah border crossing into the besieged Gaza Strip.

The march aims to pressure Egyptian authorities to open the crossing and allow the delivery of international aid, including food and medical supplies. “There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of trucks full of food rotting while kids are starving,” said Houlahan, who helped launch a Gaza solidarity site at UNB Saint John last year.

Participants from 32 countries, including a Canadian delegation coordinated by the Montreal-based group Palestine Vivra, will self-fund the journey. The march begins with arrival in Cairo on June 12, followed by travel to al-Arish near the Gaza border, and a final leg on foot. If denied access, the group plans to protest in Cairo.

Houlahan, the only participant from New Brunswick, said the daily suffering in Gaza compelled him to take part. “I had to do something,” he said, becoming emotional while speaking of children caught in the conflict.

The Global March to Gaza website says the march is non-violent and will not attempt to forcibly enter Gaza. Participants have contacted their embassies, acknowledging risks such as questioning or deportation.

This comes amid ongoing violence and dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where Israeli airstrikes continue, hospitals face catastrophic shortages, and access to aid remains severely limited. Houlahan urged action: “Lift the siege, let the food and medical supplies through, stop killing people.”

David Gordon Koch is a journalist with the NB Media Co-op. Ryan Hillier is a writer and settler living on the banks of the Petkootkweăk. This reporting has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada, administered by the Canadian Association of Community Television Stations and Users (CACTUS).