Activists on a Malaysian aid ship that had been bound for Gaza refused to hand their cargo to Egypt today, they said, fearing that it would end up in Israel.

They had tried to land in Gaza last week but changed course when the Israeli navy fired warning shots.

matthias chang ian chin interview 130608 02 Matthias Chang (left) , who is heading the mission for the Perdana Global Peace Foundation, told AFP the group was not consulted when the Malaysian and Egyptian governments worked out a deal to end the impasse.

"The Egyptian government has imposed on the Malaysian government as a condition (that)... the cargo be discharged... (and) transported via Karem Shalom, at the Israeli border in Gaza," Chang said.

"We are not assured that this cargo would in fact be delivered to Gaza, as in the past... most of the humanitarian aid was laid to waste in Israel," he added.

Chang also questioned Cairo's refusal to allow the cargo, consisting of 7.5 kilometres of sewage pipes, to be transferred via the Rafah crossing - Gaza's only crossing that bypasses Israel - given that it would be open this weekend.

Insincerity of Egyptian government

"This turn of events demonstrates the insincerity of the Egyptian government and their implicit endorsement of the illegal siege when they explicitly stated they would permanently open the Rafah crossing," Chang said.

On Wednesday, Egyptian state media said the Rafah border crossing would open on a daily basis starting Saturday.

The 12 activists and crew onboard the MV Finch aborted their second attempt to land in Gaza on Monday after engine trouble, and are anchored in a waiting area off the Egyptian port of El Arish.

Perdana Foundation officials said the MV Finch left Greece on May 11, carrying the pipes to help restore the sewage system in Gaza.

But Israeli naval forces fired warning shots at the vessel on May 16, when it was in Israeli waters about 400 metres from Gaza, forcing it into Egyptian waters.

The Perdana Foundation is headed by former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, an 85-year-old firebrand who was a strident critic of the West and Israel over the treatment of Palestinians during his two decades in power.

The organisation was also involved in the first 'Freedom Flotilla', a May 2010 attempt to break the Israeli blockade on Gaza, which ended in disaster when naval commandos raided the aid ships, killing nine Turks on board one of the vessels.

The incident sparked heavy criticism of Israel and led to a sharp deterioration in ties between Turkey and the Jewish state.

- AFP