Israeli naval occupation forces fired warning shots at a Malaysian aid ship heading to the besieged Gaza strip, forcing the vessel to retreat to Egypt.

Israeli naval occupation forces fired warning shots at a Malaysian aid ship heading to the besieged Gaza strip, forcing the vessel to retreat to Egypt.

"The MV Finch, carrying sewage pipes to Gaza, had warning shots fired at it by Israeli forces in the Palestinian security zone this morning at 6:54 am (0354 GMT)," said Shamsul Azhar from the Perdana Global Peace Foundation.
"Currently the ship has been forced to anchor in Egyptian waters, 30 nautical miles from Gaza," he told AFP news agency.

"The vessel was in the Palestinian security zone, about 400 meters from the Gaza shoreline, when they were intercepted by Israeli naval forces," Azhar further explained, adding it was now anchored 30 nautical miles away in Egyptian territory.

An Israeli army spokeswoman confirmed that the vessel, flying a Moldovan flag, had been intercepted as it sailed from Egypt's El-Arish port, where it had been docked for several days.

"A navy patrol boat contacted the vessel, which claimed to be heading for the Gaza shores.
Once it crossed into Israeli naval territory and didn't answer calls to turn back, warning shots were fired in the air and it returned to El-Arish," she said.