Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini on Monday 'deplored' the loss of civilian life in Israel's raid on a flotilla of aid ships bound for Gaza in which up to 19 people were killed. 'I absolutely deplore... the killing of civilians' in the assault on Monday, Frattini told reporters, describing the Israeli pre-dawn military action as 'really serious.' Israeli naval forces stormed the aid flotilla in international waters, killing up to 19 pro-Palestinian activists, most of them reportedly Turkish nationals. The bloody ending to the high-profile mission to deliver supplies to the besieged Gaza Strip plunged Israel into a diplomatic crisis on the eve of talks between President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 