Author Henning Mankell aboard Gaza flotilla stormed by Israeli troops
Fears for safety of bestselling Swedish crime writer Henning Mankell after surprise attack results in at least 10 deaths
Alison Flood , guardian.co.uk, Monday 31 May 2010

Photo - The Swedish author Henning Mankell, who was due to appear at the Hay festival by satellite link. Photograph: Murdo Macleod for guardian.co.uk

The bestselling Swedish author Henning Mankell was on board a convoy of Gaza-bound aid boats stormed by Israeli forces today, resulting in the deaths of at least 10 activists and injuries to dozens of others. With the ships out of communication since the attack early this morning, it is not yet known whether he is among the injured.
Mankell had decided to join the aid-delivering flotilla – also believed to include Nobel peace laureate Mairead Corrigan-Maguire – in a gesture of solidarity towards Palestinians currently living under the Israeli blockade. The Free Gaza Movement and a coalition of activist groups have been attempting to circumvent import restrictions imposed by the country since 2008.

A spokesperson for Ship to Gaza-Sweden said he had last spoken to someone on board Mankell's ship just before 5am Swedish time (4am BST). "They were telling us then about the Israeli soldiers climbing into the neighbouring ship, and they heard shooting aboard it. I was not speaking to Henning but to one of his friends. The Swedish ship was attacked a bit later, 10-15 minutes later. The whole attack was done between 4-5 o'clock Swedish time," said Mikael Löfgren.
"We don't know what's happened since. When the ships were attacked, the Israelis cut off all communications and we haven't heard from them since. As we speak, I can see the ships coming into the harbour of Ashdod [on television] so I presume that's them," Löfgren said. "We don't know if they're all right. The numbers of the killed and wounded are rising all the time. The latest information is talking about 19 deaths. It's a really awful thing."

Mankell, creator of the Wallander detective series, was scheduled to speak at the Guardian Hay festival this weekend but was forced to pull out after the flotilla was delayed as it negotiated entry into Israeli waters. He was set to be beamed in live from the boat for an evening appearance on Saturday evening with Ahdaf Soueif, the Egyptian novelist, and interviewer Jon Snow, but the link didn't work; festival organisers called him numerous times but failed to connect.
The full report at The Guardian online.