IAF plane flew near Malta before alleged attack on Gaza aid ship, flight data shows

An Israeli Air Force plane was flying near Malta several hours before a reportedly Hamas-affiliated Gaza-bound humanitarian aid ship was allegedly attacked by drones in international waters in the area.

Data from flight tracking websites shows that a KC-130 transport plane, flown by the IAF’s 131st Squadron, departed from the Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel on Thursday afternoon and hovered near Malta for a number of hours, at an altitude of 5,000 feet. The plane headed back to Nevatim and landed there in the evening hours.

Several hours after the plane returned to Israel, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition — an international non-governmental organization which is campaigning to end Israel’s blockade of Gaza — claimed that the their ship, Conscience, had been struck twice by armed drones 17 nautical miles (31.5 kilometers) east of Malta, “causing a fire and a substantial breach in the hull.” The group blamed Israel for the attack.

The MaltaToday outlet reports that the plane did not enter Maltese airspace at any point during its flight near the island country, citing official flight tracking information. The Maltese government also said that “no aircraft or vessel currently mentioned in local and foreign media in relation to the case of the vessel Conscience” had entered the country’s airspace or territorial waters.