Sunday, November 28, 2010

Israeli forces shoots Gazan fisherman at shore

27 November 2010 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza


Ahmed Mahmoud Jarboh

At 12:30 pm, Ahmed Mahmoud Jarboh, aged 26, was shot in the back of the left knee by the Israeli Offensive Forces while fishing at the shore of Beit Lahya, in the north of the Gaza Strip. He is currently hospitalized in Kamal Udwan, in the neighboring town Jabalya, where his condition is being monitored.
Beit Lahya borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west and the 1949 Armistice Line with Israel to the north. The village’s economical resources are crippled by Israeli policies that restrict the fishing zone to three nautical miles and impose a 300 meter buffer zone on Palestinian land.
For over a year Ahmed has daily frequented the same area to fish with a small cast net. Today he and two of his colleagues were fishing from the shore at approximately 350 meters from the border fence. This incident again exemplifies a recent UN report conclusion that the danger zone does not halt at 300 meters: it can reach up to 1.5 kilometers.
“For over a year I have come here daily to fish. The soldiers in the watchtower see me every day: they know I am only a fisher! There was no reason for them to be suspicious as this is a normal, daily scene. Nothing special was going on.”
Even though the IOF soldiers should be familiar with Ahmed’s face, he was shot without warning:
“The only shot that was fired was the one that hit my leg”, he states.
When they heard the bullet being fired, the two other fishermen ran away to find shelter. As soon as they considered the situation “safe” again, they realized what had happened. They went to pick up Ahmed from the water and brought him to the hospital. The wound is stitched now, but probably surgery will not be necessary. It is still uncertain how long Ahmed will have to remain in the hospital and how long it will take for him to fully recover from this injury.
“I’m a father of two and I am the sole provider for my family. We have nothing else than what I gain from fishing.”
The 3 nautical mile restriction has resulted in a depletion of revenues which pushes people into the dangerous buffer zone. According to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, there have been nine people injured this month while working in the buffer zone. Ahmed Mahmoud Jarboh marks the tenth victim of IOF buffer zone aggression in four weeks.

Updated on November 28, 2010

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Israeli forces fire on Gaza fisherman

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- A Palestinian fisherman on the shore of the northern Gaza Strip was shot in the foot on Saturday, medics said, the second casualty of the day by Israeli fire.

Spokesperson of Gaza’s medical services Adham Abu Silmiyya said a 19-year-old man was injured in his left foot and was evacuated to Kamal Udwan Hospital in Jabalia.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said soldiers identified the man in an area known as a "no go zone," and after firing in the air, "had to fire toward his lower body."

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

B'Tselem Video: The Israeli military severely restricts fishing in the Gaza Strip.

B'Tselem




 
This video presents the stories of three fisherman from the Gaza Strip who have difficulty earning a living because of the blockade and the army’s harsh restrictions on fishing off the coast. In breach of Israel’s undertaking in the Oslo agreement to allow fishing up to a distance of 20 nautical miles (37 km), the army has gradually reduced the distance in which it permits fishing. At the time of filming, the limit was six nautical miles from the Gaza coast. Since then, the permitted distance has been further reduced, to only three nautical miles (5.5 km) in December 2009. The restrictions harm thousands of fisherman and their families, who depend on fishing for their livelihood, and deny residents of the Strip a vital food source.
Length: 5:20 minutes

Background on the topic

Saturday, November 6, 2010

PCHR weekly report 28/10 - 3/11/2010: attack off shore Beit Lahya

extracts from PCHR weekly report 28/10 - 3/11/2010:

IOF continued to fire at Palestinian workers, farmers and fishermen in border areas in the Gaza Strip.
IOF fired at Palestinian fishermen in the northern Gaza Strip. 
 
Monday, 01 November 2010 


At approximately 07:40, Israeli gunboats stationed opposite to Beit Lahia beach in the northern Gaza Strip opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats. Palestinian fishermen fled from the area and no casualties were reported.