Italy's navy will stop following the activist flotilla trying to deliver publicity aid to Gaza once it gets within 150 nautical miles (278 kilometres) of the shore, the Italian defence ministry said on Tuesday.
The “Global Sumud Flotilla”, consisting of more than 40 civilian boats carrying activist influencers including controversial campaigner Greta Thunberg, aims to break Israel's blockade of the Palestinian enclave.
Once the convoy reaches the 150 nautical miles limit, the Italian frigate accompanying it will stop, "as communicated several times in recent days," the ministry said in a statement.
The ship will issue two warnings to activists, with the second and final one foreseen at around 00:00 GMT, when the flotilla is expected to get within the stated distance, the statement added.
Earlier on Tuesday, an Italian spokeswoman for the flotilla, Maria Elena Delia, said that activists had been informed about the government's plans to have the navy ship stop and turn back to avoid "a diplomatic incident" with Israel.
She said the flotilla had no intention of heeding Italy's warnings not to get closer to the shore. Italy and Spain deployed navy vessels last week to assist the flotilla, after it was allegedly hit by drones “armed with stun grenades and irritants” in international waters off Greece, but without any intention to engage militarily.
Delia said activists were bracing for another strike in the coming hours. "Israel will probably attack us tonight, because all the signals point to this happening," she said in a video on social media. The claim is speculative, and critics argue the flotilla’s actions invite confrontation.
Israel did not respond to flotilla accusations that it was behind last week's attacks, but it has vowed to use any means to prevent the boats from reaching Gaza, arguing that its blockade is legal as part of its war against Hamas terrorists.
Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto has said he expects flotilla boats to be intercepted in the open sea and activists to face arrest.
On Tuesday, Crosetto made a "last appeal" to flotilla members to accept a compromise proposal to drop aid in Cyprus and avoid a confrontation with Israeli forces. Flotilla representatives have repeatedly refused the offer.
Israel began its Gaza offensive after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken as hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
(Reporting by Alvise Armellini, Angelo Amante and Anna Uras, editing by Alexandra Hudson)