'I was prepared to face death on Gaza flotilla'

Tutor Mohammed Ali was part of a flotilla trying to deliver supplies to Gaza when it was intercepted by Israeli forces

A tutor who was part of a flotilla that was intercepted by Israeli forces as it tried to deliver medical supplies to Gaza said he was "prepared to face death".

Mohammed Ali, who arrived back in the UK on Friday, said he was happy to be back home in Wiltshire but felt he "didn't accomplish" what he set out to achieve.

He said he had "said goodbye" to his family before he joined the flotilla as "I didn't think I'd be back".

The boat he was travelling on was intercepted in international waters in the early hours of Wednesday. The Israel Foreign Ministry described it as "another futile attempt to breach the legal naval blockage and enter a combat zone ending in nothing".

Mr Ali, a private tutor who is originally from Birmingham, has lived in Swindon for 20 years.

He said he decided to join a flotilla heading to Gaza with the intention of "finding someone and apologising for all the suffering they were going through".

"We wanted to let the people of Gaza know that, as human beings, we're trying everything to reach them," Mr Ali said.

The Israeli government had warned that people who entered its waters would be detained.

Mr Ali (second from right) was travelling on a boat with eight others

Mr Ali said he and the eight people he was on the boat with were at sea for five weeks.

"I thought the boat might sink," he said. "Sometimes there was a heavy storm, noises I remember from watching Titanic, you could hear similar sounds of the wood creaking and cracking."

He told BBC West: "I had said goodbye to my family. At the airport, I was touching everyone, saying: 'Is this for real?' I was quite prepared to face death."

'Blindfolded'

Mr Ali said he was woken up by the boat's captain shouting "interception" at about 04:00 BST on Wednesday.

"Within a minute, we heard a massive thump, which made our boat go off-balance," he said.

"I didn't have time to put my sandals on or put on my life jacket.

"We were blindfolded and taken into a police bus. We didn't know where we were going, they were pushing us."

Mohammed Ali was reunited with his daughter and other family members at Heathrow Airport on Friday

According to human rights organisation Adalah, the flotilla passengers were taken to Ktzi'ot Prison in Israel, which they said was "notorious for harsh and abusive conditions".

Mr Ali said there were between eight and 10 people in each cell.

"We were trying to sleep... they would come and bang on the door, every now and then they would just shout and try to get you up, try to keep you awake."

Mr Ali said "gruesome footage" of the 7 October attacks was played on a TV screen.

"It was quite disturbing," he said. "They thought I was sympathising with Hamas but I was there to help the people, help the children, not to take any side with politics."

He claimed he was not given his medication for Type 2 Diabetes, despite asking for it multiple times.

"The first time I had my medication was when I got home yesterday," Mr Ali said.

On Friday, lawyers and the Turkish government were successful in getting the group released and Mr Ali flew home later that evening. The UK Foreign Office said it had been supporting the affected British nationals.

Mr Ali said he was happy to be reunited with his daughter Aleyah and other loved-ones

Unbeknown to Mr Ali, while he was in prison a ceasefire agreement had been reached.

"That made me feel like I want to go back to Gaza, seeing old people and children carry their belongings back home, I was like 'I need to go and find another way to get back'."

In a previous statement, the UK Foreign Office said it was supporting the affected British nationals and their families. It has been approached for further comment.