ANKARA - A Turkish customs official on Monday denied Israeli allegations that activists aboard a Turkish aid ship for Gaza stormed by Israeli forces possessed weapons, the Anatolia news agency reported.
"Allegations that there were weapons aboard the Turkish ship are baseless," Fevzi Gulcan, the head of customs at the Mediterranean port city of Antalya, told Anatolia.
Passengers on the ship, the Mavi Marmara, were allowed on board after they were searched by security officers and x-ray scanners before setting out into the Mediterranean on their mission, he added.
The vessel was one of six ships in a fleet bound for Gaza with 10,000 tonnes of aid supplies that were stormed by Israeli navy commandoes in a deadly operation before dawn on Monday.
Israeli media have reported 19 passengers were killed and 36 wounded in the raid.
Israel accused the activists aboard the ship for the bloodshed, arguing that its troops opened fire only after they were attacked with knives, clubs and even live fire.
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