A ship with 16 people and humanitarian aid to Gaza was wary through explosions, early on the coast of Malta on Friday, so that the ship was set on fire and the risk of sinking, according to the human rights group that operates the ship.
The ship and his crew were safe after a tugboat vessel helped to extinguish the fire after a Mayday call, the government of Malta said in a rack.
It did not say what the fire had caused, adding that the authorities monitored the ship that was in the international waters in the Mediterranean Sea.
The ship, called the conscience and operated by a group called the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, had left Tunisia earlier this week with human rights activists and help.
Before it went to Gaza, the ship was planned to stop in Malta and to pick up about 40 more people, including the Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, said Yasemin Acar, a spokeswoman for the group.
It was unclear Friday morning whether the ship, which was damaged, could moor in Malta. The source of the explosion is not exactly and it was not known whether the ship was intentionally aimed.
Crew members believed they had been hit by a drone attack, the coalition said. Around 12:20 pm local time, armed drones shot two bombs at the front of the ship when the ship approached Malta, the coalition said in a statement.
That caused a fire, caused a substantial infringement in the hull and broke the generator on board, leaving the crew without power. Sharing the group’s account could not be confirmed independently.
Video supplied by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition and verified by the New York Times seems to show a fire on the ship deck when an alarm goes. Security images registered after the reported time of the fire shows that people on the ship assess the damage while a man has a fire extinguisher.
The authorities in Malta said they received a Mayday call from a passenger vessel with the same name around 12:20 pm, reporting a fire on the arch. No victims were reported, the Maltese government said.
A nearby tugboat with fire fighting equipment helped the fire under control at 1:30 am, according to Malta’s statement. Less than an hour later it was confirmed that the crew was safe.
Ann Wright, another spokeswoman for the group, said that the crew had remained on board instead of evacuating to keep the disabled ship.
The group asked the crew to pick up the rubble of the explosions so that the forensic examination could undergo, which would help determine whether a weapon had been used, Mrs. Wright said.
Israel has limited humanitarian aid to enter the Gaza Strip, last exercised since March In an attempt to put pressure on Hamas to accept a proposal to extend a ceasefire.
The Israeli army has blocked attempts from the past by pro-Palestinian activists to help Gaza over sea, including violence.
In 2010, nine passengers aboard the Mavi Marmara, a fleet that is helping from Turkey to Gaza, were killed in an Israeli command raidcausing international indignation and a deterioration of Turkish-Israeli relations.
It was not clear who was responsible for the explosions on the Flotilla near Malta on Friday. The Israeli army did not immediately respond to a request for comments.
There were 12 crew members and four civil passengers on board the ship, according to the Maltese government and the Freedom Flotilla Coalition.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, who has challenged Israel’s blockade of Gaza by offering humanitarian aid there, called on the international community to condemn the attack.
“The attack of international human rights activists in international waters is a war crime,” said Mrs. Acar.
Jiawei Wang Seoul reported contributed.
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