Gaza humanitarian ship welcomes new Malta offer of help

Updated 5.17pm

An international NGO which intends to sail a ship to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid said on Sunday that it is in talks with the Malta government about allowing the vessel to enter Maltese waters to repair damage caused by a drones attack early on Friday.

It was unclear, however, whether the ship would be able to dock.

"Our preference would be for the boat to be repaired in dock. We don’t see a way for it to be repaired in international waters,” Thiago Avila, a spokesperson for the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which operates the ship, said.

But a Malta government spokesperson told Times of Malta that Malta's offer was to assist in repairs at sea, even at its own expense, to enable the ship to carry on with its journey, as long as it was only carrying humanitarian aid.  

There could be no other preconditions, the spokesperson said. 

The ship Conscience suffered damage to its front section including a loss of power when hit by two drones just outside Maltese territorial waters, the NGO reported on Friday.

The Conscience had been waiting to take on board some 30 peace activists from around the world before trying to sail to Gaza.

Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Sunday that the Maltese was prepared to assist the ship with necessary repairs so that it could continue on its journey, once it was satisfied it was only carrying humanitarian aid.    

Coalition officials said Sunday that the ship was not in danger of sinking but they wanted to be sure it would be safe from further attacks while undergoing repairs, and able to sail out again.

Earlier on Sunday the coalition had accused Malta of impeding access to its ship. Malta denied the claim, saying the crew had refused assistance and even refused to allow a surveyor on board to assess the damage.

In the afternoon coalition officials said that the surveyor was welcome to board as part of the deal being negotiated with Malta so that the ship could continue on its mission.

“Negotiations are ongoing and today we received indications that we would be given these guarantees. Our preference would be for the boat to be repaired in dock. We don’t see a way for it to be repaired in international waters,” Avila said.

Explaining their initial refusal, he said that during the first hours after the bombing there was a lot of suspicious activity near the boat by other vessels and planes flying over, so there was a lot of confusion, 

Asked what proof the organisation had that Israel was behind the attack, the activists said they did not currently have any. 

“Who else would attack a vessel with humanitarian aid headed for Gaza?” said spokesperson Yasemin Acar, while referring to the presence of an Israeli military aircraft near Maltese airspace hours before the incident took place. 

The group also said it hoped to receive a new flag from the Maltese government., the ship's former flag having been withdrawn hours by Palau before the attack on Friday.

Activist Greta Thunberg, who was among activists waiting to board the ship, urged young people to continue using all methods to stand up for what is right, to try their best to break the 'inhumane siege on Gaza' and open up a humanitarian corridor.

”If you have even the slightest bit of humanity there is simply one choice, to stand out of your comfort zone and protest by all means and join the global struggle for a free Palestine,” she told a press conference.

The Graffitti pressure group cancelled a protest it was planning to hold on Sunday afternoon over the government's alleged refusal to assist the ship and welcomed 'positive developments'.  

Call for international inquiry

The  Anadolu news agency said Sunday that UN human rights office has called for an independent investigation into the drone attack.

"We have seen the worrying reports on the incident. We are unable to independently confirm them. However, it is crucial that there be independent, impartial, and effective investigation by competent authorities into the incident leading to apparent fire on board the vessel and a distress call in international waters, with a view to ensuring accountability," human rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told the Turkish news agency in a statement.