Gaza aid flotilla set to defy Israel as Italy urges compromise

By Angeliki Koutantou and Alvise Armellini

ATHENS/ROME (Reuters) -Organisers of an international aid flotilla said on Friday they would press on with attempts to break an Israeli naval embargo on Gaza, despite pleas by Italy to accept a compromise proposal and not take further risks.

The Global Sumud Flotilla, made up of about 50 civilian boats, was hit on Wednesday by drones carrying stun grenades and itching powder in international waters 30 nautical miles (56 km) off the Greek island of Gavdos.

No one was injured, but vessels suffered some damage. The GSF blamed Israel, which did not respond to the accusation but said it would use any means to block the boats' access to Gaza.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella urged the flotilla's organisers to accept a proposal to drop off its aid supplies in Cyprus and hand them to the Catholic Church's Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem for distribution in Gaza. 

"The value of human life, which seems to have lost all meaning in Gaza, where it is gravely trampled upon ... requires us to avoid endangering the safety of any person," he said in a statement.

Israel said it backed the idea, but the flotilla rejected it.

'TRYING TO DELIVER HOPE AND SOLIDARITY'

The flotilla is carrying people from dozens of countries, including lawyers, parliamentarians and activists such as Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg. 

Its passage across the Mediterranean has raised international tensions, especially after Italy and Spain reacted to the drone attacks by dispatching navy ships that are on stand-by for rescue and humanitarian operations.

"We are not just delivering humanitarian aid. We are trying to deliver hope and solidarity, to send a strong message that the world stands with Palestine," Thunberg said from the deck of a boat off the Greek island of Crete on Thursday.

Greece said it would guarantee the safe sailing of the flotilla off Greece, but Friday's launch will take the flotilla back into international waters. Organisers said the boats aimed to arrive early next week.

CONTINUE AT YOUR OWN RISK, ITALY SAYS

Israel said the flotilla would not pass and that the project would assist the Palestinian militant group Hamas. 

The timing of the flotilla's departure from Greece was unclear. Organisers said one of the lead boats had suffered a mechanical failure but that the flotilla would continue.

Italy's foreign ministry sent a message to Italian members of the flotilla on Thursday warning them against continuing with the mission after refusing the Cyprus plan, and offering help with repatriation if they chose to disembark in Greece.

It said the navy ship deployed by Rome would intervene only for sea rescue or humanitarian operations, and would not engage in defensive or offensive military maneuvers. 

"Whoever (continues with the mission) takes on all risks and is personally responsible for them," it said.

Israel began its Gaza offensive after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken as hostages back to Gaza. The offensive has killed over 65,000 people in Gaza, Gaza health authorities say.

(Reporting by Stefanos Rapanis, Makis Melissourgakis and Alvise Armellini; additional reporting by Angelo Amante in Rome, Anna Uras in Bologna; Writing by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Edward McAllister, Aidan Lewis and Timothy Heritage)