Israel detains 5 Gaza fishermen

Israeli naval forces detained five Palestinian fishermen from the same family this morning while they were sailing off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip.

The head of the Union of Gaza Fishermen, Nizar Ayyash, told Ma’an that Israeli forces detained Umran Saber Bakr, Mahmoud Saber Bakr, Abdullah Saber Bakr, Thabet Abd Al-Raziq Bakr and Omar Muhammad Bakr, and took them to the port of Ashdod in southern Israel.

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Meanwhile, Israeli naval forces opened fire at Palestinian fishermen sailing off the coast of Beit Lahiya, witnesses told Ma’an. No injuries were reported.

An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an she would look into the reports of both incidents.

Israeli military incursions inside the besieged Gaza Strip and near the “buffer zone” have long been a near-daily occurrence.

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Palestinians who work near the “buffer zone” often come under fire from military forces, as the Israeli military has not made clear the precise area of the designated zone.

The practice has in effect destroyed much of the agricultural and fishing sectors of the blockaded coastal enclave.