Deputy head of the Malaysian delegation Afandi Salleh said the unanimous decision by the activists was made for safety reasons and to avoid taking unnecessary risks.

“We have also sent copies of our passports to the Malaysian embassy in Egypt, which will play a role in facilitating our return to Malaysia.

“The Malaysian embassy in Turkey has also contacted me to say that should we be detained by the Israeli regime, the process for the Malaysian FFC delegates will be the same as what was experienced by the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF),” Bernama reported him as saying.

Afandi was speaking from aboard the Conscience, currently less than 230 nautical miles from Gaza, during a live video call with media representatives at the headquarters of Humanitarian Care Malaysia (MyCARE).

He said everyone remains highly motivated despite hearing some troubling accounts from members of the GSF who had previously been detained by Israeli forces.

“Everyone is in good spirits, despite facing rough seas and the presence of several drones (believed to belong to Israel) circling above the ship, seemingly to intimidate the mission participants,” he said.

MyCARE CEO Kamarul Zaman Shaharul Anwar said that all eight TMTG sailing vessels joined the Conscience at 11.30am Malaysian time today.

“All vessels are now in international waters awaiting the arrival of the observer ship Shireen Abu Akleh, which is carrying a team of lawyers,” he said.

The eight Malaysians aboard the vessel that departed from Porto Otranto, Italy, on Sept 30 are delegation head Alauddin Ali, Dr Fauziah Hassan, Dr Hafiz Sulaiman, Dr Ili Syakira Suhaimi; lecturers Afandi and Noorhasyimah Ismail, MyCARE trustees board member Norsham Abu Bakar and Astro Awani journalist Syafik Shukri Abdul Jalil.

Another Malaysian, Dr Maziah Muhammad, is on the Umm Saad, which departed from Catania, Sicily, on Sept 27 together with seven yachts en route to Gaza.

The FFC mission involves about 150 participants from 25 countries, with MyCARE leading the Malaysian delegation.