Gaza- Bound Ship "Estelle" under Attack

Local Editor

A ship carrying pro-Palestinian activists seeking to breach "Israel's" naval blockade on Gaza has "come under attack" shortly after being approached by "Israeli" vessels, a spokeswoman told AFP on Saturday.

"The Estelle is now under attack -- I have just had a message from them by phone," Victoria Strand, a Stockholm-based spokeswoman for the Ship to Gaza Sweden campaign told AFP.
"Some time ago, they said that they had military ships following them, but we don't know exactly what they mean when they say they were attacked," she said of the vessel which is carrying five parliamentarians and a former Canadian lawmaker.
Meanwhile, the "Israeli" military confirmed that navy vessels were in the vicinity of the MV Estelle but claimed that the ship had been attacked or boarded. For its part, "Israeli" Ynet daily confessed that "the "Israeli" army seized control of the ship."
According to the Jewish activist, Dror Feiler, who is aboard the "Estelle", "six "Israeli" vessels are surrounding the "Estelle" and masked soldiers are trying to board it."

"Intercepting the ship is being conducted in international waters," he added.
Sailing under the Finnish flag, the 53-meter vessel is carrying two olive trees, 41 tons of cement, books, toys, and medical equipment.

The Organizers of the "Ship to Gaza Sweden" campaign said the "Estelle" is carrying about 30 people, including parliament members from Sweden, Norway, Greece and Spain.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by moqawama.org