Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) member Jamal Al-Khudari, who is also the head of the Popular Committee to Break the Siege on Gaza said the ship contains 3,000 tons of humanitarian aid.

If successful, the ship would be the fourth such vessel to reach Gaza in defiance of the Israeli military blockade of the coastal territory. A group of international and Palestinian activists calling themselves the Free Gaza movement sailed to Gaza three times since August.

The ship is the first such action by an Arab government.

Al-Khudari Libyan officials told him that the aid was sent by the Libyan republic under the supervision of its Foreign Ministry. He affirmed that if ship could makes land in the Gaza Strip, a series of other ships will follow.

Al-Khudari hailed Libya’s gesture as a practical step to break the siege on Gaza, and called on other Arab states to follow suit.

Israel has imposed a strict closure on Gaza since June 2007, and a near total closure since 4 November, blocking critical deliveries of food, fuel, and medicine. Israel has rebuffed calls from top United Nations and Palestinian leaders to lift the siege.

On Sunday, a senior Hamas leader, Khalid Mash’al, challenged Arab states to take a more active role in supporting the Palestinian people under siege.

"What happens in Gaza is shame on Arabs and Muslims as well as on international community," said Mash’al, speaking at a conference in Damascus.

"Each Arab country can send a ship through the sea to Gaza," he said.