Four fishermen detained by Israeli navy released after interrogation

Date: 26 / 03 / 2009 Time: 20:51

[Ma'anImages]

Gaza- Ma’an – The Israeli army released four fishermen detained off the Rafah coast Wednesday, said the de facto Ministry of Prisoners Thursday.

The four men, ordered off their fishing vessel in the early hours of the morning, were members of the An-Najjar family, identified as Khalil, Muhammad, Yousif and Abd Allah.

The men say they were within the 2o nautical mile fishing limit imposed by Israeli warships, but were surrounded and ordered off their ship. They were handcuffed and taken to an unknown location, then released after eight hours of interrogation.

The ship has not been returned.

The ministry noted that the number of the fishermen detained since the Israeli disengagement in September 2005 is now more than 150. Most of the men were later released, but more than a dozen others were sentenced to terms for 5-15 years.