We watched Conscience burn and stayed silent
06 May 2025
Just 30 kilometres off European territory, a civilian aid ship with 18 humanitarians on board was attacked. Conscience, the only ship in the world currently carrying food and medical supplies to Gaza, was struck by drones in international waters near Malta just after midnight on 3 May. The fire burned for nearly two hours, injuring four civilians.
Conscience is part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a movement challenging Israel's illegal blockade of Gaza that has cut off 2.3 million people from essential supplies. In 2010, Israel killed nine activists in a military operation against six civilian ships, including one of the Coalition.
Just seven hours before the attack, Conscience was deflagged. It had been sailing under the Palauan flag when the island nation abruptly revoked its registration, leaving it unprotected under international law. No reason was given.
After the drone attack, a tugboat arrived offering firefighting support and rescue – but abandoning ship would have exposed the vessel and its cargo to seizure. The crew refused and reportedly blocked Maltese authorities from boarding.
"Their lives were at risk," Yasemin Acar, member of the Coalition's steering committee, told The European Correspondent. "If Israel can kill thousands with impunity and European governments remain complicit, how can we be expected to trust them?" Acar asked.
The Maltese government claims its "territorial integrity was never compromised," stating no foreign aircraft or vessels entered its airspace or waters. However, public flight data shows that hours before the attack, an Israeli military aircraft was tracked flying low over Maltese airspace. The Israeli military has declined to comment. The UN human rights office has called for an independent investigation.
 | Belle de Jong In Malta, the situation remains murky, with the Freedom Flotilla and the government offering conflicting accounts. After three days at sea, the damaged Conscience has accepted government support and set course for Malta, prompting local activists to cancel a planned protest. But the core fact remains: a humanitarian ship was attacked just off Europe's borders and no European leader, including Maltese president of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola, has condemned it. "Why is it," Acar asks, "that our ship, the only one in the world carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, is blocked, while the ships carrying weapons are granted free and safe passage?" |
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