Freedom Flotilla Coalition Blames Israel for Ship Attack in International Water
Valletta (Quds News Network)- A Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) ship carrying humanitarian aid and activists heading for Gaza was attacked in international waters off the coast of Malta early Friday. The FFC has accused Israel of carrying out the attack, amid reports that an Israeli Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft departed from Israel on Thursday afternoon and was tracked en route to Malta.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, an international NGO, said, “At 00:23 Maltese time, the Conscience, a Freedom Flotilla Coalition ship came under direct attack in international waters.”
“Armed drones attacked the front of an unarmed civilian vessel twice, causing a fire and a substantial breach in the hull,” it added, blaming Israel.
BREAKING: At 00:23 Maltese time, a #FreedomFlotilla ship was subjected to a drone attack. The front of the vessel was targeted twice, resulting in a fire and a breach in the hull. The ship is currently located in international waters near #Malta. An #SOS distress signal was sent. pic.twitter.com/J6oEQafuOb
— Freedom Flotilla Coalition (@GazaFFlotilla) May 2, 2025
The statement did not directly accuse Israel of carrying out the attack.
However, it did demand that “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”.
The group said activists from 21 countries were on board. They are on what it called a “mission to challenge Israel’s illegal and deadly siege of Gaza, and to deliver desperately needed, life-saving aid,” where aid groups warn people are struggling to survive following a two-month total blockade by Israel.
Everyone aboard the aid flotilla for Gaza that was hit by drones are “confirmed safe”, the Maltese government said in a statement on Friday.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition describes itself on its website as an international network of pro-Palestinian activists working to end Israel’s blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave by taking direct, non-violent action.
“There is a hole in the vessel right now and the ship is sinking,” Yasemin Acar, the coalition’s press officer, told CNN by phone from Malta on Friday morning.
Malta’s government said the ship was carrying 16 people – 12 crew members and four civilian passengers. But FFC earlier gave CNN a higher figure of 30 people on board the vessel.
The ship, the Conscience, was heading to Malta, where a large contingent of activists were due to board before it departed for Gaza, more than 1,000 miles away, but had not made it into port, the group said.
FFC said it had been operating under a media blackout over the mission because it wanted to avoid potential sabotage.
“Our vessel is 17 kilometers off the shores of Malta right now in international waters, and they have been subjected to a drone attack twice,” said Acar, adding that the generators at the front of the vessel were the apparent target.
The CNN report said that an Israeli Air Force C-130 Hercules was picked up leaving Israel early Thursday afternoon and flying to Malta, according to flight-tracking website ADS-B Exchange. The Hercules did not land at Malta’s international airport, the data shows, but the cargo aircraft did fly at a relatively low altitude – below 5,000 feet – over eastern Malta for an extended period of time. The Hercules flew over several hours before the Freedom Flotilla Coalition said their vessel came under attack. The plane returned to Israel about seven hours later, flight-tracking data shows.
CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for comment.
An Israeli Air Force C-130 Hercules was picked up leaving Israel early Thursday afternoon and flying to Malta, according to flight-tracking website ADS-B Exchange. The Hercules did not land at Malta’s international… pic.twitter.com/k9LaWV2NTa
— Ramy Abdu| رامي عبده (@RamAbdu) May 2, 2025
In 2010, Israel attacked a flotilla in international waters carrying humanitarian supplies for Gaza, killing at least nine people and sparking outrage around the world.
Gaza has been under Israeli military siege since October 7, 2023, when it started its genocidal war against Palestinians.
Since March 2, Israel has maintained the closure of Gaza’s main crossings, cutting off food, medical and humanitarian supplies, leading to an unprecedented deterioration of humanitarian conditions, according to reports by human rights organisations who have accused it of using starvation as a weapon of war against Palestinains.
Israel also resumed its genocide in Gaza on March 18 after violating the ceasefire aggresment signed in January, killing over 2,200 Palestinians and wounding more than 5,700—mostly children and women, according the Palestinian Health Ministry.
