Israel Claims Gaza-Bound Aid Ship Agrees to Flee to Egypt

Charity Insists Ship Remains En Route to Besieged Strip

by Jason Ditz, July 13, 2010

Israeli officials claim that after contacting the Gaza bound Amalthea aid ship and issuing yet another threat of military action against them, the captain agreed to reroute the vessel to Egypt.

Yet the claim has been contradicted by the charity group which chartered the vessel in the first place, which insisted that despite the repeated threats the ship remains en route to the Gaza Strip itself, with its tons of food and medical aid.

The ship was expected to arrive at the strip either Wednesday or Thursday, but reports from the crew suggest that there are engine troubles which have slowed the voyage, and it is no longer clear what the estimated time of arrival is.

The ship, dispatched by a Libyan aid group, is just the latest in a series of boats attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. A number of other voyages are planned by a number of other aid groups since the Israeli attack on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish aid ship, left nine aid workers dead and brought renewed attention to the plight in the Gaza Strip.

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