A Catalan activist on the Gaza flotilla: "Attacking a civilian ship carrying humanitarian aid is a war crime."

BarcelonaA ship from the so-called Freedom Flotilla, the coalition of NGOs in solidarity with Gaza, was attacked with drones early this morning in international waters, as it was preparing to sail towards the Strip to try to break the Two months of total blockade of humanitarian aid by IsraelTwo drone-guided missiles attacked the bow of the vessel at 0:23 a.m. while it was anchored near Malta. At that point, it was waiting for all the volunteers to arrive so it could board and set sail. The attack caused a fire that was extinguished and a significant crack in the ship's hull, according to the organization, and three activists were slightly injured, according to sources from the organization told ARA, who specify that there were 12 crew members and six activists on board at the time.

In the afternoon, the Malta Maritime Safety Committee met urgently after an investigation was opened, according to the Ministry of the Interior reported to the local press. The Maltese press also reports that official sources confirmed that an Israeli military aircraft, a C-130 Hercules, entered its Flight Information Zone on Thursday night from the east. The aircraft spent three and a half hours in this area before returning to Israel. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz The US military has declined to comment on the incident.

"Attacking a boat of unarmed civilians carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza is a war crime. We can't prove it was Israel, but who else? They're the only ones who have sabotaged and killed activists on flotillas in Gaza," Edu Luc explains to ARA as he waits in the port of Valletta in Malta to board the boat this morning, like most activists. In 2010, nine Turkish activists died when Israeli forces attacked the Freedom Flotilla, which was denouncing the blockade of Gaza.

In this case, the ship Conscience The ship had set sail from the port of Tunisia and was anchored in international waters waiting for the arrival of the majority of activists, who had completed all the official procedures in Malta, when it was attacked. In this way, the organization hoped to avoid being blocked in a Mediterranean port by bureaucratic obstacles, as has happened on other occasions. "We were sleeping when they warned us of the attack. The ship was cut off from communication for a long time, and we weren't able to speak to the captain until midday, who told us they had managed to control the breach in the hull," explains Lucas. At dusk, the organization reported that the vessel was blocked by a Maltese coastguard military vessel as it attempted to enter the island seeking the safety of the port.

Another Catalan activist, Masmi, from the Ítaca collective, is on the mission. Both participated last year in the flotilla that was unable to set sail from Turkey, which was also scheduled to include former Barcelona mayor Ada Colau and MEP Jaume Asens due to bureaucratic obstacles. The flotilla attacked this morning included volunteers from 21 countries, including climate activist Greta Thunberg, who approached this afternoon in a small boat to watch the attack. Thunberg explained to Reuters that she had also planned to board the boat this morning as part of "one of the many initiatives to open a humanitarian corridor and contribute to trying to break Israel's illegal siege of Gaza." A Basque activist also participated.

Thirty activists and humanitarian aid

In addition to around 30 activists, the ship was carrying medicine, water, and food to Gaza. "We are outraged by the international community's complicity in the genocide in Gaza: they always put obstacles in our way when we only carry the humanitarian aid that governments should be delivering," Lucas added. The organization is assessing whether there is any possibility of moving forward with the solidarity initiative. For its part, Hamas considered the attack a "flagrant act of piracy and organized state terrorism."

According to the organization, after the attack, which affected the ship's generator, they sent out an SOS signal, to which Cyprus responded by dispatching a rescue vessel. The Maritime Rescue Coordination Center in Rome reported that a tugboat had been dispatched to the scene, according to the flotilla's statement. The Freedom Flotilla calls on Malta to act to ensure the safety of the ship and reminds it that it is obligated to do so by international maritime law and international conventions. "The lack of response and information about the rescue efforts violates international law," it warns. "The Israeli ambassadors must be summoned and held accountable for the violations of international law, including the continued blockade and bombing of our civilian vessel," the NGO statement adds.

The International Committee of the Red Cross warned this Friday that the humanitarian response in Gaza is "on the verge of complete collapse" due to the fighting and the two-month total blockade of humanitarian aid. The organization highlights the risk of the spread of infectious diseases due to the destruction of water sanitation systems and the deteriorating hygiene conditions due to a lack of water and supplies, while hospitals struggle to continue operating without medicine and food. "Without immediate action, Gaza will sink further into chaos that humanitarian efforts will not be able to alleviate," they warn.