Turkish aid ship departs for Gaza ahead of Eid

A second Turkish ship loaded with humanitarian aid for Gaza has departed from Turkey and is heading towards the Israeli port, Ashdod.

Turkey sent the first shipment of 10,000 tonnes of aid to Gaza strip in July after reaching a reconciliation deal with Israel.

The bilateral ties between the two sides had slumped after an Israeli attack on a Turkish aid flotilla had killed 10 activists in 2010.

"This is the second major shipment of humanitarian aid to Gaza since an agreement was reached with the government of Israel to normalise relations," a senior Turkish official, who requested not to be named, told Al Jazeera over the weekend.

The ship carries edibles, clothing and other important items of use for Gazans ahead of Eid al-Adha – a religious festival for Muslims.

The official said that the shipment carries 1,288 tonnes of flour, 95 tonnes of vegetables, 95 tonnes of vegetable oil, 64 tonnes of sugar, 170 tonnes of rice, 300,000 pieces of clothing, 1,000 bicycles, 100 wheelchairs, 100,000 backpacks, 350,000 diapers and stationery kits.

"We expect the items to be distributed to the people of Gaza before the upcoming Islamic holiday." the official said.

"In addition to regular aid materials, we added presents for Palestinian children such as bicycles."

Turkey's first shipment of humanitariam aid had docked at the Israeli port of Ashdod early in July.

From there the goods were transported to Gaza on trucks.

The second shipment is also expected to be carried through the same mode.