Gaza-Bound Flotilla Reports Second Attack and Fire as It Prepares to Sail
The activist group calling its efforts the Global Sumud Flotilla, released a video showing a second incident on one of its vessels in Tunisia, apparently involving an incendiary device dropped from above. The group insists that it is undeterred and will set sail understanding the dangers as it attempts to break the blockade on Gaza.
The video released by the group shows a device being dropped onto the deck of their vessel and people yelling fire. The report said there were no injuries and only minor fire damage to the deck of the vessel named Alma. Reported to have a length of 108 feet (33 meters) and registered in the UK, it is said to be one of the largest vessels in the flotilla.
The group asserts in its statement today that Alma was attacked on the evening of September 9, approximately 24 hours after the first incident with the vessel named Family. In last night’s incident, they are saying an “unlit drone released an object that ignited the deck of the Alma boat. Experts believe it may have been an incendiary device coated with fuel-soaked materials, deliberately designed to spark fire upon impact.”
They report the fire was extinguished on the Alma. The passengers and crew are reported to be safe. The organizers contend that Israel is organizing activities to “distract and derail our mission.”
BREAKING: A second assault on the Global Sumud Flotilla within just 48 hours—this time in Tunisian waters. Footage shows an unlit drone releasing an object that ignited the deck of the Alma boat. Experts believe it may have been an incendiary device coated with fuel-soaked… pic.twitter.com/dy7QRYS4Mx
— Global Sumud Flotilla (@GlobalSumudFlot) September 10, 2025
Tunisian officials yesterday denied that the incident on Monday was a drone attack and only commented on the fire. On Wednesday, the Interior Ministry said it believes that it was "a premeditated attack." They said an investigation is underway so that everyone would be able to know "who planned this attack, who colluded, and who carried it out."
The boats had been expected to depart Tunisia on September 10, and they will meet up with additional boats from Sicily. The tracking system shows 20 boats in two locations in Tunisia, but as of late on Wednesday, they are not yet underway. The group said it was timing the departure based on weather and logistical conditions.
Yesterday, it reported a similar incident with a boat named Family, homeported in Madeira. It was also in the anchorage in Tunisia’s Sidi Bou Said port when a fire started on the forward deck. The group released a video showing something being dropped from above, saying that it was another drone that had attacked. Damage was limited to the area and lifejackets stored on deck.
Second boat hit by suspected drone, say
Gaza aid flotilla activists
The pro-Palestinian activists sailing a flotilla carrying aid to Gaza said on Tuesday that another one of their boats had been hit while docked off the Tunisian coast, with some flotilla members saying they had seen a drone before the ship caught fire.
Issued on: 10/09/2025
By: FRANCE 24
Organisers of a Gaza-bound flotilla carrying aid and pro-Palestinian activists said late Tuesday that another of their boats had been struck in a suspected drone attack off Tunisia's coast.
Aiming to break Israel's blockade of Gaza, the flotilla was due to resume its voyage on Wednesday after being delayed multiple times by weather conditions and other issues.
"Second night, second drone attack," Melanie Schweizer, one of its coordinators, told AFP.
The British-flagged Alma was docked in Tunisian waters on Tuesday, when it was "attacked" and "sustained fire damage on its top deck", the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement, adding no one was hurt.
AFP journalists at the scene saw a boat in the distance surrounded by Tunisian law enforcement vessels with flashing lights.
The incident comes a day after the activists said another of their boats was hit by a similar suspected UAV attack, but Tunisian authorities said "no drones" had been detected.
The activists said they would continue their "peaceful voyage" on Wednesday as planned, as the flotilla "presses forward with determination and resolve".
Two nights, two fires
Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, posted video of the burning Alma and said it indicated a UAV attack.
"Video evidence suggests a drone -- with no light so it could not be seen -- dropped a device that set the deck of the Alma boat on fire," she wrote on social media.
The flotilla arrived in Tunisia at the weekend and was anchored off the coast of Sidi Bou Said, north of Tunis, when it reported the first incident.
Some members of the flotilla said they saw the drone, adding that the boat's bow caught fire immediately after.
But authorities dismissed reports of a drone strike as "completely unfounded", suggesting the fire may have been caused by a cigarette butt.
Tunisian national guard spokesman Houcem Eddine Jebabli told AFP overnight "no drones have been detected".
Security footage posted by the flotilla organisers showed a burning mass falling from a distance onto the ship.
'Distract and derail'
The activists did not blame Israel for the suspected attacks in their statement but said "they come during intensified Israeli aggression on Palestinians in Gaza, and are an orchestrated attempt to distract and derail our mission".
The Israeli military did not respond to AFP's request for comment on Tuesday.
The United Nations declared famine last month in parts of Gaza, warning that 500,000 people face "catastrophic" conditions.
Sumud means "resilience" in English, and the flotilla describes itself as an independent group not linked to any government or political party.
Among its high-profile participants is environmental activist Greta Thunberg.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
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