Israel decided Monday to deport a Turkish national suspected of setting fire to a cargo ship near Haifa port back to his country, Israeli Interior Ministry said.
Sources in Tel Aviv said that the decision came after consultation between Interior Minister Aryeh Deri and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, aiming not to create tensions with Ankara, especially after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered his condolences to President Reuven Rivlin on the death of his wife.
The Turkish stowaway, 45, was reportedly en route to Europe when he realized he was in the wrong location and decided to set a fire on the ship to divert attention in order to avert capture by Israeli authorities. He had a record of trying to illegally enter into Israel and was also deported back to Turkey.
The 24-members crew, following emergency procedures, locked themselves inside the command bridge and dispatched the Israeli port administration to the cargo ship anchored 6 kilometers off the coast of Haifa.
Israeli Forces said it received a report overnight from an anchored ship that a fire was started on board by “unidentified individual” who was threatening to drown the ship. Israeli authorities then sent a force on board to deal with the situation. It took about 6 hours to contain the situation and no casualties were reported. The extent of damage caused to the vessel remains unclear.
The man was arrested and brought to investigation, but authorities later decided to release him and send him back to his home country.
The MSC Canberra container ship sails under a Panamanian flag, but belongs to a Turkish company. It left Turkey's Mersin Port on Friday and was scheduled to enter Haifa port on Monday.
Israeli authorities didn’t immediately report the incident and banned its publication till Monday early morning when Israeli media began speaking of an “important event” in the Haifa port, noting that forces of the navy and the air force were dealing with it.
The media explained that the details of the event could not be revealed due to censorship, creating global media whirlwind that did not subside until it became clear that the incident was not related to security.
