A Scottish TV reporter was among a group of journalists arrested earlier today when Israeli soldiers boarded two ships sailing toward Gaza.

Hassan Ghani of Press TV

Hassan Ghani who works for Iran's Press TV, was detained along with Lina Attallah, managing editor of the Egyptian independent daily Al-Masry al-Youm's English edition and Jihan Hafiz, correspondent for the US-based broadcasting outlet Democracy Now!

Hassan, 26, born in Glasgow, studied documentary production at the University of Stirling. He is a member of the National Union of Journalists.

Hafiz, born in California, is a US citizen. Her family lives in Arlington, Virginia. She has been broadcasting regularly from the Mediterranean (see here and here).

Jihan Hafiz of Democracy Now!

The ships were forced to sail into the Israeli port of Ashdod, where all 27 passengers were handed over to the authorities.

They were aboard the Canadian vessel Tahrir (Arabic for liberation) and the Irish boat Saoirse (Irish for freedom), which were reputedly carrying medical equipment from Turkey to Gaza.

The flotilla, meant to be a symbolic and non-violent peace gesture, was about 50km from Gaza when intercepted and boarded by the Israeli navy.

Hassan is a survivor of the attack by the Israeli military on the Mavi Marmara, the Turkish ship that was boarded by Israelis in May 2010, resulting in the deaths of nine people.

He broadcast live from the ship while under sniper fire and later told of his experiences in a Press TV interview, three clips of which are available on YouTube.

A member of the New York-based press watchdog, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), said: "Israel must immediately disclose the names of all journalists aboard the ship and allow them to work freely.

"Israel should also refrain from confiscating any journalistic material as it has done in past raids."

Source: AP/The Guardian/ahramonline/Democracy Now!/STV/CPJ/YouTube