A top Israeli official has described launching an international convoy to carry humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip as an act of provocation.

"The sail is a provocative act that is unnecessary in light of the figures, which indicate that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is good and stable," AFP quoted Colonel Moshe Levy, who heads the Gaza coordination and liaison office, as saying on Wednesday.

This is while a survey conducted by the United Nations Development Program showed that the continued Israeli siege of the Gaza Strip has been the main cause of the slow pace of reconstruction and aid relief.

Levy made the remarks before nine ships from Turkey, Ireland, Britain and Greece set sail on Thursday taking 10,000 tons of construction material, medical equipment, school supplies and around 750 activists to Gaza.

Israeli authorities have threatened to block the fleet and arrest all people onboard the vessels.

Despite the threat, all the activists are determined to complete their mission, reported Press TV correspondent Hassan Ghani, who is accompanying the convoy.

Israel has imposed a strict blockade on the Gaza Strip since 2007, depriving its nearly 1.5 million Palestinian inhabitants of fuel, food, clothing, medicine and other necessities.

(Press TV)