Greece holds aid workers bound for Gaza

ATHENS, Greece, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Greek commandos were holding Gaza-bound British aid workers on a Greek-owned ship and treating them like terrorists, a man aboard the ship said.

The captain of Strofades IV took the volunteers, part of the Road to Hope convoy sailing to Gaza, to Greece after leaving Libya, the BBC reported Friday.

Tauqir Sharif of London, who is aboard the ship, told the broadcaster the soldiers were treating the group like "terrorists."

Sharif said seven aid workers from Britain and two from Ireland were being held.

The British Foreign Office is investigating and said the British Embassy in Athens had contacted the ship's owners and Greek authorities to try to resolve the situation safely.

"British Embassy staff will provide consular assistance to the British nationals on board if requested," a statement said. "We remain in close contact with the Greek authorities, and our priority remains that there is a safe resolution to this incident."

Ellie Merton, the Road to Hope's liaison in London, told the BBC the seven "are being treated like terror suspects by the Greek commandos and we are extremely concerned."

Sharif said Libyan naval vessels and aircraft pursued the Strofades IV when it left Libya, but fell back when the ship entered international waters. He said a Greek warship and coast guard vessel began tailing the cargo ship as it approached Piraeus, Athen's main port.

Sharif also was on the Gaza-bound aid ship Mavi Marmara that tried to breach an Israeli naval blockade in May, the BBC said.

Israel came under international criticism for its commando raid on the Turkish-flagged ship that resulted in nine activists being killed. Israel said its commandos were attacked by the ship's passengers and were justified in firing their guns. Israel also said some of the activists had ties to terrorist organizations.

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flotilla

road to hope

gaza