Malta brings six crew members off ship in drone strike row

Prime Minister Robert Abela has said that Malta could tow the stricken Conscience to port for repairs once a maritime expert has been allowed to board the ship and study the results of Friday's alleged attack.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition had hoped to pick up supporters, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, in Malta then sail on to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinian victims of Israel's blockade of the territory and renewed military assault against the Hamas militant group.

But, on Friday, a fire broke out on board the vessel after what the group says was a double drone strike, which the activists argue was most likely launched by Israel to halt or delay their mission.

Neither Israel nor Malta, whose vessels intervened to help douse the fire, have confirmed the attack.

But Abela promised that the Conscience will be allowed to continue on its mission once any necessary repairs are concluded. The Flotilla Coalition has welcomed the offer.

"Six people on this ship made a request to come ashore to our country and then immediately leave to their countries," Abela told parliament Monday.

Previously, the international activists had resisted calls for them to abandon ship, fearing being forced to drop their mission.

"This request was accepted immediately and those people are in the process of being transported to Malta by the Armed Forces of Malta, and they will catch a plane back to their country later today," the premier said.

Initially, Flotilla Coalition volunteers had said the surveyor would only be allowed on board if the ship was towed into Maltese territorial waters, but Abela said that was not acceptable, as Malta wanted to know more about the condition of the vessel before taking charge of its safety.

Malta also refused a request that three individuals currently not on board be taken out to the Conscience with the inspector.

"The ship's captain now has accepted that the surveyor is allowed on board while the ship sits outside Malta's territorial waters, and I’m informed that the surveyor is in process of arriving at the ship," Abela said.

During an online press conference on Sunday, before Monday's departure of six crew members, the flotilla group said there were 18 people on board, 12 crew members and six "human rights observers".
International waters
The activists explained the Conscience has no flag because the government of the Pacific nation of Palau had announced that they were withdrawing their registration on Friday, the day of the alleged strike.

Otherwise, they insisted they had made every effort to comply with international maritime law when embarking on the mission to take aid to Palestinians in Gaza.

According to the Flotilla Coalition, the Conscience was attacked in international waters, causing a fire that disabled the vessel and minor injuries to crew members.

Online flight tracking service ADS-B Exchange showed that an Israeli C-130 military cargo plane had been in the area immediately before the incident and had made several low altitude sweeps over the area.

Israel is known for conducting covert operations beyond its borders, including several during the Gaza war that it only acknowledged later.

The activists said the strike appeared to target the boat's generator.

Thunberg told reporters that the incident should not distract from the focus of the boat's mission to Gaza.

"What we are doing here is to try our very best to use all the means that we have to do our part, to keep trying to break the inhumane and illegal siege on Gaza and to open up humanitarian corridors," she said.