VALLETTA, Malta — Malta offered on Sunday to repair an aid ship and send it on its way to Gaza after pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel activists said the vessel had been hit by a drone strike.

But Prime Minister Robert Abela said the Freedom Flotilla Coalition must first allow a maritime surveyor on board to inspect the “Conscience” and determine what repairs are needed.

The activists had pointed the finger at Israel, which has blockaded the Gaza Strip throughout its military campaign against the Hamas terror group, for the attack. Israel says the goal of its blockade is to pressure Hamas to free the remaining hostages of the 251 taken by Hamas-led terrorists during the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, in which invaders killed some 1,200 people and started the war.

Activists have previously accused Malta of preventing access to the ship, saying volunteers from 13 countries who tried to reach the ship from Malta on Friday and Saturday were intercepted by the Maltese military, which had forced them back to Malta under threat of arrest. Malta denied the claim, saying the crew had refused assistance.

If the ship can be fixed at sea, it will be, but otherwise it will be towed under Maltese control to the Mediterranean island for repairs, paid for by Malta.

“In the last few hours there was insistence that first the boat comes into Maltese waters and then the surveyor is allowed onboard,” Abela said.

“Before a vessel — any vessel — is........

© The Times of Israel