The captain of a Gaza-bound Libyan aid ship Tuesday rejected an Israeli demand that it dock instead in Egypt, the mission organizers said, setting course for a new confrontation over Israel's naval blockade.
Six weeks after it drew a world outcry by killing nine Turks in the botched boarding of another ship that tried to reach the Hamas-ruled Palestinian territory, Israel said it would turn away or seize the cargo vessel Amalthea — renamed "Hope" by activists.
A charity chaired by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, said in a statement an Israeli warship was near the Moldovan-flagged Amalthea, which left Greece on Saturday for what would normally be a three-day voyage to Gaza.
In response to the Israeli order to head for the Egyptian port of El Arish, "the captain of the Libyan ship and the head of the foundation team on board reaffirmed that the ship's destination is Gaza and no other place," the charity said.
By: Brant
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