The Israeli Navy Monday morning blocked a Libyan ship trying to challenge Israeli sovereignty over Gaza coastal waters by landing at Gaza with 3,000 tons of food and medicine. The Foreign Ministry confirmed that it stopped the ship around dawn and that no force was necessary.

"The Navy warned the ship that it was approaching prohibited waters and it decided to turn back," Foreign Ministry spokesman Yossi Levi said.

The ministry earlier stated it would not allow the ship to land because Libya is "a hostile state...and what guarantees do we have that the boat is not carrying weapons and explosives for Hamas?"
Libya is "a hostile state...and what guarantees do we have that the boat is not carrying weapons and explosives for Hamas?

The boat, called the Al-Marwa, turned away from the naval blockade and headed for a port in Egypt,The Olmert administration previously has not carried out threats to stop pro-Arab activists from landing at Gaza. "We will treat this boat differently than the earlier ones that were allowed into Gaza," one official told United Press International (UPI).

A government spokesman told IsraelNationalNews last week that it would not make a decision concerning the Libyan ship until it became "relevant," but they were not available for comment Monday morning.

Libya has claimed the ship is laded with food and medicine.

The Libyan ship last week left the port of Zouara, approximately 75 miles west of Tripoli, on Tuesday. The Libyan Fund for Aid and Development in Africa donated 500 tons of oil, 750 tons of milk, 1,207 tons of rice, 500 tons of wheat flour and 100 tons of medicine. It was due to arrive in Gaza in one week, according to Lakhdouri Abdelhamid, director of the fund.

Hamas and United Nations officials in Gaza have claimed for more than a year that a humanitarian crisis exists due to Israel's control over shipments of merchandise through Gaza crossings. However, Israel has supervised hundreds of trucks moving humanitarian shipments of food and goods into Gaza.

Two weeks ago, the political arm of the radical Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood said it also is organizing a ship to Gaza.

"By dispatching the ships, Jordan will become the first Arab country to take such an initiative," said Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Zaki Bani Rsheid.