Libyan group’s ship carrying aid for Gaza moving again after stalling, destination unclear

Libya aid ship moving again, destination unclear

JERUSALEM — A Libyan charity’s ship carrying aid for the Gaza Strip resumed its journey Wednesday after reporting that engine trouble had stalled it, but without clarifying if it intended to defy an Israeli naval blockade of the Palestinian territory.

With Israel insisting the ship would not reach Hamas-ruled Gaza, the potential for a showdown on the high seas continued to loom. Israeli missile ships stalked the vessel as it moved through international waters, and framing the faceoff was a deadly Israeli naval raid of another blockade-busting ship in May.

The captain of the Moldovan-flagged Amalthea told the Israeli navy late Tuesday that engine troubles had hobbled the ship. About 12 hours later, the ship was sailing again, according to a military official and an Al-Jazeera TV reporter aboard the ship. But it wasn’t clear whether it was headed for Gaza or would drop its challenge to the blockade by docking at the nearby Egyptian port of el-Arish.

“They spoke to the captain an hour ago, asking him to determine his direction,” said Ayash Daraji, the reporter for the pan-Arab Al-Jazeera station on board the ship. “The captain answered, ‘I am heading south,’ without identifying his direction.”

Daraji said two warships were flanking the Moldovan-flagged Amalthea’s left side to keep it from veering toward Gaza. El-Arish was on the ship’s right.

Israeli military officials said Tuesday that the ship’s captain informed Israel he was heading for the Egyptian port. Egypt had promised to transfer the ship’s supplies to Gaza if the vessel docked there.

An Egyptian security official said the el-Arish port was “making preparations” to receive the Amalthea later Wednesday, reported the state news agency MENA, without giving details or identifying the official.

However, a spokesman for the Libyan mission insisted Tuesday that the ship still intended to try to reach the Palestinian territory — but wouldn’t violently resist any efforts to stop them.

“First and foremost, we want to arrive to Gaza. If this is impossible, we don’t want to subject anyone to danger,” Youssef Sawani, an official with the Gadhafi International Charity and Development Foundation who was in contact with the boat, told the pan-Arab Al-Jazeera television station.

The foundation, headed by the son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, said Amalthea left Greece on Saturday carrying 2,000 tons of food and medical supplies.

Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev had repeated a standing offer, inviting the activists to sail to the Israeli port of Ashdod and unload the supplies there.

The deaths of nine pro-Palestinian activists in the May 31 raid focused international attention on Israel’s blockade of Gaza, imposed after the Islamic militant and anti-Israel Hamas overran the Palestinian territory in June 2007. The international criticism forced Israel to ease its land blockade of the territory but it has maintained the naval embargo, insisting it is vital to keep weapons out of Hamas’ hands.

A Gaza health official said a 42-year-old Palestinian woman was killed and four other Gazans were wounded late Tuesday by an Israeli tank shell. The military said it opened fire after spotting people near the security fence they suspected might be laying explosive devices.

The Gaza blockade and the challenges to it have caused Israel serious diplomatic damage, putting it on the defensive against demands for inquiries and criticism for its role in Gaza’s plight.

Israel says the commandos who took part in the May 31 raid were defending themselves against violent pro-Palestinian activists. Activists have said they acted in self-defense after Israeli troops landed on their ship.

Israel has resisted calls for a U.N.-led inquiry but has appointed two panels, one military and one civilian, to review the raid.

Findings released Monday from the military-commissioned report found flawed planning and intelligence-gathering but concluded the commandos were justified in opening fire after being confronted by violent pro-Palestinian activists on board the lead ship.

The mandate of the civilian inquiry is limited to investigating the legality of the operation. Two international observers have been attached to the civilian commission, which is led by a retired Israeli Supreme Court judge.

Associated Press Writers Sarah El Deeb and Maggie Michael in Cairo contributed to this report.