CAIRO: A Libya aid ship heading for the Gaza Strip to deliver humanitarian assistance has docked in the Egyptian port of al-Arish after Israel's navy refused to let it reach the blockaded Palestinian territory. Gamal Abdel Maqsoud, the director of the port, said the ship will unload its cargo on Thursday and the Islamic Red Crescent will carry the materials over land into Gaza. According to reports from the area, Israeli gunships forced the vessel to turn from its Gaza destination after a number ships intervened to bar the path. Gaza has been cut off from the outside world for the past three years, leaving 1.5 million Palestinians struggling to survive. Not too often, the Egyptian government does open the Rafah Border Crossing to allow Palestinians to move out of the area and allow into Gaza few economic assistance packages. Many human rights activists and groups have called on Israel and Egypt to end the economic blockade on Gaza, which they say has left the population struggling to survive. The Gadhafi foundation, headed by the son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, said the ship, the Amalthea, left Greece on Saturday carrying 2,000 tons of food and medical supplies. The current standoff follows an Israeli raid on a similar Gaza-bound ship in May, which saw 9 activists killed by soldiers who had boarded the vessel. BM
