Israeli drone targets aid ship bound for Gaza in international waters
An Israeli drone struck a ship carrying humanitarian aid to the war-torn and besieged Gaza Strip while it was in international waters near Malta on Friday.
According to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which organised the mission, the attack appeared to deliberately target the ship’s generator, sparking a fire and causing a “substantial breach in the hull” that left the vessel in danger of sinking.
The FFC, a coalition of nonviolent activists campaigning to end the Israeli siege on Gaza, said they organised the mission under a media blackout “to avoid any potential sabotage”.
The ship, which set sail shortly before the attack, carried at least 30 people from 21 countries, including “prominent figures”.
Following the attack, the ship issued an SOS distress signal.
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Cyprus dispatched a vessel but FFC said it was “not providing the critical electrical support needed”.
The crew was left without power, and communications with the vessel were destroyed, FFC added.
The Maltese government said on Friday morning that a nearby tug was directed to help the ship and confirmed everyone abroad was "confirmed safe".
“Israeli ambassadors must be summoned and answer to violations of international law, including the ongoing blockade and the bombing of our civilian vessel in international waters,” FFC said in a statement.
The Israeli attack comes exactly two months after authorities halted all humanitarian aid and commercial goods from entering Gaza.
According to Munir al-Bursh, director general of the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, the blockade - now the most severe since the war began 18 months ago - has plunged nearly 91 percent of the population, around two million people, into a food crisis.
The number of children receiving treatment for malnutrition rose by 80 percent in April compared to March, driven by the ongoing blockade, the UN Humanitarian Affairs office (Ocha) reported earlier this week.
According to Ocha, 92 percent of children aged six months to two years - and their mothers - are not receiving the minimum required nutrition, while 65 percent of Gaza’s population lacks access to clean drinking water.
At least 50 Palestinian children have died from malnutrition in Gaza since the Israeli war began in October 2023, according to Gaza government media office.
Overall, Israeli forces have killed more than 52,000 Palestinians in the besieged enclave, including over 15,000 children, and wounded 118,000 more. At least 10,000 more people are missing.
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