Gaza aid flotilla says boat struck by drone at Tunisian port
Greta Thunberg is among the activists sailing with the flotilla to Gaza.
By Christian Edwards, Lucas Lilieholm, Dalia Abdelwahab, CNN
(CNN) — An activist group seeking to break Israel’s siege on Gaza by sea said one of its main boats was struck by a drone at a port in Tunisia Monday night, but all six passengers and crew are safe.
Tunisia’s National Guard said claims of an attack on the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) boat at the Sidi Bou Said port were “not based in truth.” It said an initial investigation found that a fire had broken out on the vessel from a lighter or a cigarette butt.
But a video of the incident, published by GSF, showed an incendiary object fall from the sky and explode on impact with the boat.
GSF said the vessel struck was known as the “Family Boat,” which has previously carried GSF Steering Committee members. It said the Portuguese-flagged ship had sustained fire damage to its main deck and below-deck storage.
The vessel is one of around 50 in the flotilla attempting to break Israel’s naval blockade and carry aid into Gaza. The flotilla left Barcelona last week and plans to sail across the Mediterranean to the besieged enclave. Its members include Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and the Irish actor Liam Cunningham.
Speaking at a press conference near the Tunisian port, Miguel Duarte, a Portuguese activist on board the Family Boat, described how he heard a drone buzzing overhead late Monday evening.
“I came out of the cover of the deck to see a drone hovering about three or four meters above my head,” Duarte said Tuesday.
He said another person came onto the deck to see the drone, which then “moved to the forward part of the deck” and “dropped the bomb,” causing a fire on board.
“This is a shameful attack, and we will not be deterred,” Duarte told reporters.
Since Israel imposed a total blockade of Gaza in March, groups like GSF have attempted to sail ships carrying aid into the enclave, although Israel has intercepted them.
In May, a Gaza-bound aid ship caught fire and issued an SOS, after what its organizers claimed was an Israeli drone attack off the coast of Malta in international waters. The Israeli military declined to comment on the incident.
In June, a yacht with 12 activists on board, including Thunberg, was intercepted off the coast of Gaza. Israel dismissed it as a “selfie yacht” carrying “less than a single truckload of aid.”
CNN has asked the Israeli military for comment on Monday’s incident in Tunisia.
In a statement, GSF said that “acts of aggression aimed at intimidating and derailing our mission will not deter us.”
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