MALTA PANIC As Calls For Gaza Aid Ship Investigation Grow!

Right, so are Malta digging themselves an even bigger hole where it comes to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition ship, the Conscience, still stranded in international waters off their coast?
There’s been a lot of conflicting media coverage on this story, especially where it comes to the actions of the Conscience crew and the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the FFC themselves. On one had some media are saying the crew was blocking aid and stopping a surveyor coming aboard to assess the damage, on the other hand, other outlets were saying the crew welcomed the surveyor to see the damage, though the crew, as a piece of footage the FFC have now released goes to show, may have rightly had concerns about that, wanted some assurances and they didn’t get them. Why could an FFC representative not accompany the surveyor and indeed why are the blocking the FFC’s request for a UN investigation into the incident as well? What is it exactly Malta are trying to hide here, because all they’re doing is raising suspicions even more as to their own role in all of this.
Right, so that was a piece of footage there, released by the FFC there, Tan Safi speaking on their behalf prior to the visit by a surveyor to inspect the ship, something some news outlets reported the crew had blocked, but in actual fact they had welcomed. They were suspicious though clearly and understandably I think. The attack happened off Malta’s coast, 2000km from Israel, but who else would attack a vessel carrying aid for Gaza? The FFC wanted one of their representatives to accompany the surveyor, yet this was refused. Why? What possible problem could that cause, unless the surveyor, or those who appointed him, had already predefined the results perhaps? The very thing the crew might have concerned about, their vessel being surveyed by a nation that appears to be complicit to some degree by refusing to immediately come to their aid and bring them into port. Asking for guarantees is hardly unreasonable under the circumstances do you not think?
This having been refused, its not like the crew had much leverage, they put this video out to call for a UN impartial observer, which was also refused. This makes matters even worse for Malta because if you have something to hide from the UN, then you really are looking complicit to some degree here.
It was five days ago now that the humanitarian aid vessel Conscience, was attacked by drones in international waters near Malta. The ship was en route to deliver essential supplies to Gaza, sought to break the aid blockade when it sustained significant damage, including a fire and a hole in its hull. While no serious injuries were reported among the 30 individuals on board – 16 of whom now remain on board at time of writing - the incident has become a massive diplomatic row amid fears Israel are now prepared to attack anyone, even halfway across the Mediterranean and may be doing so with the assistance of other Med nations, in this case Malta.
According to the FFC, the Conscience was targeted by two drone strikes while preparing to take on additional activists in Malta The attack resulted in a fire and damage to the vessel's front section, leading to a loss of power. Despite the severity of the incident, the ship remained afloat, though allegedly at risk of sinking and all individuals on board were reported safe. The FFC accused Israel of carrying out the attack, though Israel has not commented on the allegations, but as I say, who else would target a Gaza aid ship? Certainly a proper investigation needs to be done to confirm such matters though, a UN investigation, but having barred a UN investigator from accompanying their surveyor, how likely are Malta to permit this?
In the wake of the incident, the Maltese government announced it would conduct repairs on the Conscience in international waters. A government-appointed maritime surveyor was allowed on board the vessel and this excerpt from the Maltese Independent details some of their apparent findings:
‘The government said that the "survey carried out by the maritime surveyor found that the vessel has damages which require minor repairs so that the vessel can sail to its next destination. The marine surveyor reported that a number of compartments, including the ship's hull and engine room were found in good or satisfactory condition and free from water ingress. He also said that most of the important equipment on the vessel: such as the two main engines, the two generators, the bow thrust and the fire extinguishers were operational."
During his inspection the maritime surveyor only found the provision of food and drink for crew members for about 30 days, the government added. "The captain indicated that a limited part of the food and drink supplies were for humanitarian purposes. A fuel storage of around 32 tonnes was also found."’
There is a lot to unpack there actually, certainly from my own perspective. Regular viewers who will have read the blurb in my bio in each of my videos, or the channel main page will know I’m a welder by trade, what I haven’t specified is that I’m a time-served and fully indentured fabricator and welder and that I served my four year apprenticeship in a ship repair yard, Falmouth Dockyard as it happens, with a little of Devonport Dockyard thrown in for good measure. The point is, patching up damaged ships is literally what I trained to do so I’ve cast a very critical eye on all of this.
It’s good that the engines, generators, bow thrust are all found to be operational still, I know there was concern about the generators, I also know the ship wanted to limp into Maltese waters for greater protections and therefore assumed it still had power, though was of course denied to it, again asking questions of Malta as to why.
Having seen images from photos before today and images in that piece of video there, I’ve got concerns about the integrity of the steel work, I’ve not an image of the alleged hole in the hull and note the surveyor claims it is in good condition to the contrary of that claim, but there is still significant platework as its called needing to be done.
The repairs are to be done at sea, and this to my mind is the biggest alarm bell. For one, repairs at sea tend to be by way of emergency work, to get a ship wharfed or into dry dock to effect proper repairs, or they tend to be the odds and sods jobs at the end of a repair, if a ship repair job runs late any outstanding minor work can be done at sea, a few times this in Falmouth, where some got a free trip on a ferry to France or Spain because they were working while on the go, but it didn’t happen often.
Point is, the work that needs doing and the manner in which the damage occurred, explosives, we have no idea what kind of stresses some of the plating has experienced. I have concerns about stress fractures, these can be far more widespread than you might think, I can’t fathom the logic of any ship having been attacked as this one has, an old trawler as it is already, not designed for such treatment as a military vessel might be, and the effects such stresses will have had on its steelwork. I’m not in any way implying the surveyor may not have done a good job here, but it just seems, given Malta’s response all along so far, that keeping that ship out of Maltese waters is the overriding primary concern.
Aside from that, you’ve got to ship out all the new steel, all the welding and cutting equipment. Given it’s the bow end that was hit, much of the plating that might be in need of replacement may need shaping, easy to do in dry dock, a massive time delay at sea and I wonder if holding the ship up now is part of the plan at this point.
You have to bear in mind that initially, there were indications that Malta would allow the Conscience to dock for repairs. However, this position has been reversed, with the Maltese government opting instead to conduct repairs in international waters and I think the criticism aimed at the Maltese government that this is an apparent attempt to keep the vessel outside of Maltese jurisdiction and avoid further scrutiny are perfectly valid ones.
One other point that needs making, is that Malta wanted the ship kept out of its waters and out of its ports, amid claims the ship may have been carrying weapons, accusations from Israel had been that the trip had been financed by Hamas and intended to intercept the IDF. No weapons were found by the surveyor clearly, they made note of the food on board and implied there was 30 days worth for the crew and a limited supply of humanitarian aid.
The UN has urged an independent, impartial, and effective investigation into the drone attack on the Conscience, quite apart from the request made by the ships crew. Thameen Al-Kheetan, a human rights spokesperson, emphasized the need for accountability having told Anadolu Agency that:
‘We have seen the worrying reports on the incident. We are unable to independently confirm them. However, it is crucial that there be independent, impartial, and effective investigation by competent authorities into the incident leading to apparent fire on board the vessel and a distress call in international waters, with a view to ensuring accountability.’
Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur for Palestine has also condemned the attack on the Conscience and tweeted out:
‘That Israel may have made and will make pressure on Malta re the flotilla is no surprise. Maltese authorities need support from principled states, especially in the EU, to: - assess the damage transparently (and involving the crew); - assist the ship and its crew to dock, repair and resail asap; - investigate the incident (including why Palau apparently deflagged the boat, leaving it unprotected, as it was sailing and slightly before it was hit). Courage Malta. The world needs your principled action and humanity right now. The Flotilla is doing what Member States SHOULD be doing: break the siege - stop the genocide.’
Of course she raises one of several factors which have raised suspicions about the circumstances of the attack and Malta's role in the incident that we still need answers to:
The deflagging of the vessel for one, as Albanese mentioned, just hours before the attack as that was, the Conscience was deflagged by Palau, leaving it without a recognised flag and as such uninsured. This sudden revocation of registration has led to questions about potential coordination between various actors to undermine the FFC’s mission here.
Then there is the aircraft Activity, the reports that have emerged and that this channel has previously covered of US and Israeli aircraft operating in the vicinity at the time of the strike, seemingly the likely source of the drone controls. The Maltese government has denied these claims, but the presence of military aircraft in the area, as flight plans contradict Malta during the time of the attack adds further fuel to the fire.
And then there is this latest incident, of Malta denying independent oversight. The FFC's request for an independent UN observer to survey the damage alongside the government appointed surveyor has raised even further suspicions. This refusal can easily be interpreted as an attempt to prevent impartial assessment and maintain control over the narrative surrounding the incident, which seems to be driven by a desire by Malta to keep that ship outside of their jurisdiction.
The attack on the Conscience and Malta's subsequent actions have significant implications for humanitarian efforts in this situation not to mention international law. The incident underscores the risks faced by aid missions attempting to deliver assistance to Gaza amid the ongoing blockade and how far Israel seem prepared to ensure their war of starvation continues unimpeded. Furthermore, the refusal to allow independent investigations raises concerns about the erosion of transparency and accountability in international maritime operations.
The UN's calls for an independent investigation highlights the importance of upholding international legal standards and ensuring that humanitarian missions are protected from unlawful interference, instead we’re seeing it undermined here. Regional actors are undermining and hindering rather than making efforts to provide aid and stand up for international law when it comes to the protection of vulnerable populations.
The drone attack on the Conscience and Malta's subsequent actions have gone to show that the safety of humanitarian missions has been severely eroded. The refusal to allow independent investigations and the decision to conduct repairs in international waters suggest a lack of transparency and raise questions about potential complicity. More than ever we need an independent investigation of this incident, it is frankly, no matter what your views on this incident are, something we should all support, because an attack did happen and it seems to be that the ship has come under more investigation that those who attacked it have.
For more on this story, notably Malta blocking aid by other members of the FFC to the ship, please do check out my most recent coverage of this story in this video recommendation here as your suggested next watch. Please do also hit like, share and subscribe if you haven’t done so already, so as to ensure you don’t miss out on all new daily content as well as helping to support the channel at the same time, which is very much appreciated, holding power to account for ordinary working class people and I will hopefully catch you on the next vid. Cheers folks.