A Portuguese-flagged activist boat carrying humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip was attacked by a drone off the coast of Tunisia at around midnight on September 9th, causing a fire but no injuries. The attack is being investigated.
Attack on Humanitarian Mission
Activists Miguel Duarte, among those on the boat, reported seeing the drone “about four meters above my head” before it launched an incendiary bomb that caused a fire on board.
Tunisian Government Denies Involvement
Tunisian authorities denied responsibility for the attack, with a National Guard spokesperson telling AFP that “no drone was detected” and an investigation is ongoing.
Fire Theory Dismissed
Tunisian minister Houcem Eddine Jebabli suggested the fire might have been caused by a cigarette, but preliminary findings indicate it started in life vests on the ship, which was moored 50 miles off Sidi Bou Said port.
