M'sian aid ship not allowed to berth at Egyptian port and ordered to leave

EL-ARISH (Egpyt): An Egyptian navy gunboat has ordered aid ship MV Finch (Spirit of Rachel Corrie), which has been at anchor for three days, to leave the waiting area at El-Arish Port."They are preventing the ship from berthing," said Bernama journalist Mohd Faizal Hassan, who is one of the 12 passengers and crew on board the MV Finch, in a SMS note to Bernama's headquarters here Thursday night.According to Mohd Faizal, the MV Finch has been ordered not to come within a three nautical mile radius of the port.He also reported that fresh rations and water supply were fast running out.He said the ship was still waiting for permission from the port authority to berth."We do not know when the permission will be given," he said.The ship, which is carrying 7.5km of PVC pipes to help repair Gaza's devastated sewerage system, had tried to break Israel's blockade of the strip earlier this week but was forced to divert to El-Arish Port after it came under fire from Israeli naval forces.- Bernama