Gaza fishermen call for halt of Israel violations against them

Scores of fishermen in the occupied Gaza Strip yesterday staged a rally demanding international intervention “to stop the Israeli violations against Palestinian fishermen”.

The protest, which took place at the Deir Al-Balah harbour, was organised by the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

The protestors carried banners reading “No to the policy of occupation against fishermen and their boats”, “I am looking for a living for me and my children” and “Yes to dignity and rights”.

“The sit-in comes in support of the Palestinian fishermen in the face of the Israeli occupation’s continuous violations,” the Democratic Front’s political bureau member, Talal Abu Zarifa, told Anadolu Agency, stressing that the fishermen were strongly rejecting “the Israeli confiscation of the their boats, firing at them and arresting them.”

READ: Israeli navy opens fire at Palestinian fishermen

On Wednesday, Israeli naval forces wounded a Palestinian fisherman and arrested two others as they were sailing off the shores of the northern part of Gaza. The killing came a day after an Israeli decision to more than halved the fishing area in Gaza from 15 nautical miles to six as part of the Egyptian-brokered truce with Hamas.

“The Israeli decision to reduce the fishing space from 15 nautical miles to six miles would threaten the understandings of the truce between Gaza and Israel,” Abu Zarifa pointed out.

The head of the Palestinian Fishermen’s Association in Gaza, Nizar Ayyash, recently said that Israel was not committing to the truce understandings and was refraining from expanding the fishing area.

According to the association, there are some 4,000 fishermen working in Gaza’s fishing sector, who are looking after about 50,000 dependents.

Palestinian officials say that the Israeli forces carry out daily attacks on the fishermen’s boats, injuring and arresting them for allegedly “crossing the permitted fishing area”.

READ: The easing of Gaza fishing restrictions meets Israel’s security needs, not fishermen’s interests