Anti-siege committee: Israeli naval siege targets Gaza fishermen

[ 11/08/2010 - 12:02 PM ]

GAZA, (PIC)-- Speakers at a conference organized by the Popular Committee Against the Siege agreed that the Israeli naval siege on Gaza fishermen is aimed at dissuading them from practicing their profession and displacing them from the sea, where they have worked for decades. The meeting was attended by the committee's president MP Jamal al-Khudari, Palestinian Center for Human Rights director Raji al-Sourani, and fishermen union chairman Nizar Ayash, as well as fishermen and foreign solidarity activists. Khudari said peaceful resistance against the siege has produced good results, noting that the Palestinian people are near to breaking the blockade. “Breaking the siege requires more action, more collective efforts, and an overall comprehensive outlook on how to end it,” he said, noting that the committee places special focus on fishermen because of the vibrant sector they work in, and because they have been targeted by the Israeli siege with direct gunfire and arrests at sea. For his part, Sourani said the siege is illegal and inhumane. “Bringing some types of goods does not solve the Strip’s problems,” he continued, “but keeps it as a farm onto which few medicine and food are tossed and keeps the Palestinian people as beggars.”