Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has condemned an overnight drone attack on a flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, but also criticised the mission as 'dangerous and irresponsible' and claimed it was aimed at 'creating problems' for her government. Meloni's comments came after Italy said it was sending a navy ship to assist the convoy of about 50 vessels, which include pro-Palestinian activists such as Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg, after it was attacked in international waters off Greece.
Speaking to journalists in New York, Meloni said the multipurpose frigate Fasan was not expected to use military force. She added that her government had proposed to hand over the flotilla's aid to Cyprus and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem to prevent further risks and was expecting an answer from the flotilla activists about this compromise proposal.
The attack late on Tuesday marked the third time this month that the flotilla had been targeted by drones. There have been no reports of injuries. Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said in an earlier statement the convoy had been targeted by 'currently unidentified perpetrators' and expressed the 'strongest condemnation' of the attack. The navy ship, which had previously been sailing north of Crete, was 'already en route' towards the flotilla 'for possible rescue operations'.
The Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), organiser, said in a statement: 'Multiple drones, unidentified objects dropped, communications jammed and explosions heard from a number of boats.' Life Support, a search and rescue vessel accompanying the flotilla, said it witnessed drone attacks on several boats. Head of mission Anabel Montes Mier said: 'From the bridge, we saw a large number of drones approaching from different directions, and the flashes of explosions hitting several boats.'
Videos posted by activists showed explosions on boats. One Italian MEP, Benedetta Scuderi, told La Repubblica that drones had dropped stun grenades, hitting the mast of her sailing boat. The flotilla set sail from Barcelona in late August to 'break the illegal siege of Gaza', organisers said. Israel has said it will not allow the flotilla to reach Gaza and blocked two earlier attempts by activists in June and July.
