Türkiye on Friday condemned an attack on a civilian ship belonging to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition that has raised stakes for people in besieged Gaza, who are on the brink of starvation as Israel continues a two-month-long blockade of aid to the Palestinian enclave.

Ankara said the attack poses a threat to navigation, maritime security in international waters.

Times of Malta has independently verified that an Israeli aircraft entered Malta's airspace and remained for approximately three hours before heading back to Israel.

Flight-tracking data indicates the plane lingered over the island briefly, then performed a series of low-altitude manoeuvres—around 5,000 feet—above Hurd’s Bank, located to the east. In total, the aircraft was airborne for roughly seven hours before returning to its point of origin.

A humanitarian aid ship bound for Gaza with 16 people on board was left crippled by a drone attack earlier in the day. Those onboard were rescued by the Maltese forces.

The drone attack had left the ship without power and placed it “at great risk of sinking,” said a press release by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a group of activists that seeks to end Israel’s blockade of Gaza.

“At around 2.13 am (0013GMT) it was confirmed that those on board were all safe, but all refused to leave the ship,” it said, adding that the situation was brought under control by 3.45 am (0145GMT).

The vessel, called the Conscience, is still in international waters and is being monitored by authorities, it added.

While no one has claimed responsibility for the attack, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition carried a statement that points the finger at Israel.

“Israel is willing to bomb humanitarian ships to maintain its policy of starving the Palestinian people as a method of warfare,” the statement quoted Dr Shahd Hammouri of University of Kent as saying.

Francesca Albanese, the UN rapporteur for Palestine, said on X that she had gotten a distress call from people on board the Freedom Flotilla.

"I call on concerned state authorities, including maritime authorities, to support the ship and its crew as needed," she said.

She added: "I trust the competent authorities will also ascertain the facts and intervene appropriately."