Turkey, Greece and Sweden have demanded explanations from their Israeli ambassadors as Israeli commandos killed at least 10 people in pre-dawn raids on a flotilla of six ships carrying aid for the Palestinian territory of Gaza early Monday.

"We are shocked by reports of killings and injuries of people on board boats carrying supplies for Gaza, apparently in international waters," said a joint statement from Robert Serry, U.N. special coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, and Filippo Grandi, commissioner-general of the UN Relief and Works Agency. "We condemn the violence and call for it to stop."

The Turkish foreign ministry said the incident "might cause irreversible consequences" in the nation's relationship with Israel.

"Israel has once again clearly demonstrated that it does not value human lives and peaceful initiatives through targeting innocent civilians," the statement said. "We strongly condemn these inhuman acts of Israel."

Meanwhile, a protest that began outside the Israeli embassy in Istanbul on Sunday continued into Monday. Although largely peaceful, police did use water cannons at one point to keep demonstrators a bay.

Greece has withdrawn from joint military exercises with Israel in protest at the raid on the flotilla.

The European Union, represented by the European Commission's Vice-President and High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton, has called for an inquiry to establish what happened.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas slammed the navy raid as "a massacre" and announced a three-day mourning period.

"We will have to take some difficult decisions this evening," an official from his office told Palestinian television, without giving further details.

The Palestinian Authority also called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council "to discuss the piracy, the crime and the Israeli massacre," said top negotiator Saeb Erakat.

Israel's Arab community called a general strike in response to an Israeli naval operation and called for protests across the country.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon also expressed outrage saying he is "shocked by reports of killings and injuries" and called for a "full investigation" into what happened.

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