A flotilla carrying aid to war-battered Gaza said Wednesday it would stay its course despite what it called "intimidation tactics" by the Israeli military.

The Global Sumud Flotilla -- around 45 vessels carrying activists and politicians including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg -- left Spain last month aiming to break Israel's blockade of the Palestinian territory, where the UN says famine has set in.

"In the early hours of this morning, Israeli occupation naval forces launched an intimidatory operation against the Global Sumud Flotilla," the organisers said in a statement as the vessels approached waters off Egypt, where Israel has intercepted previous attempts.

Spain and Italy, which both sent naval escorts, urged the ships to halt before entering Israel's declared exclusio

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