Activists say aid vessel bound for Gaza was struck by drone
Activists are demanding an investigation after they say a humanitarian ship headed to Gaza was bombed by a drone in the Mediterranean Sea overnight Friday.
The passenger vessel Conscience made a mayday call shortly after midnight, reporting a fire on its bow, the government of Malta said.
The ship, located off the coast of Malta in international waters at the time, was being operated by activists with the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which is campaigning to end Israel's ongoing blockade of aid into Gaza.
Israel began the aid blockade on March 2 after the end of the temporary ceasefire deal, saying they were imposing the blockade to put pressure on Hamas to release the remaining Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel.
Malta's government said that 12 crew members and four civilian passengers were on board and none were injured.
It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the reported attack.
FFC spokesperson Yasemin Acar told ABC News in a video interview from Valletta, the capital of Malta, that most of those aboard were asleep when they awoke to the sound of an explosion, Acar said the vessel was struck twice "which why they knew they were under attack."
The group claims the blasts were caused by a drone whose immediate origin the group did not know. ABC News has not been able to verify the group's claims.
Video and photos provided by the FFC showed fire and smoke on board Conscience, as well as damage to the bow of the vessel in the aftermath of the reported attack.
ABC News showed the FCC photos showing the damaged sustained to the Conscience to Trevor Ball, a former U.S. Army explosive ordinance disposal specialist.
"The damage is consistent with two small blast munitions, which can be deployed by drone," Ball said. "You'd need remnants to confirm that though, well as country of origin."
Acar said the vessel had been carrying humanitarian aid, which Israel's government is not allowing to enter Gaza.
In an online statement, the FFC called for an investigation into the reported attack and demanded that "Israeli ambassadors must be summoned and answer to violations of international law, including the ongoing blockade and the bombing of our civilian vessel in international waters."
ABC News has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the U.S. State Department for comment on the incident.
The moments after the reported strike are visible in ship tracking data from MarineTraffic. Shortly after midnight, the Conscience can be seen veering off its course. According to MarineTraffic, the vessel left Bizerte, Tunisia, on Wednesday and was scheduled to dock in Malta on Friday.
There, the FFC said, the vessel planned to bring aboard more passengers -- including climate activist Greta Thunberg and retired US Army Colonel Mary Ann Wright -- before continuing on to Gaza.
Data from online flight tracker ADSBExchange shows that a military transport plane operated by Israel's military flew over Malta in the hours before the attack.
The Lockheed KC-130H plane entered Maltese airspace at around 3:25 p.m. local time. Data shows the plane flying in a zig-zag pattern around the eastern coast of Malta at an altitude as low as 4,350 feet before beginning its return to Israel at around 7:30 p.m. local time, nearly five hours before the reported attack on Conscience.
-ABC News' Dana Savir and Benjamin Siu contributed to this report.
