GAZA, March 27, 2016 (WAFA) - Israeli armed soldiers Sunday opened their machine gunfire on Palestinian farmers and shepherds along the borderline to the east of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip.
WAFA correspondent said forces stationed at borderline military watchtowers, opened live fire on farmers and shepherds, however, no injuries were reported.
Israeli troops routinely open fire at Palestinian farmers and other civilians if they approach borderline lands. Israel has unilaterally declared a buffer zone extending between 500 meters and 1,500 meters into the Strip, effectively turning local farms into no-go zones.
According to a United Nations’ OCHA, 17 percent of Gaza‘s total land area and 35 percent of its agricultural land lie within the buffer zone as of 2010, directly affecting the lives and livelihoods of more than 100,000 Gaza residents.
“Israeli forces’ use of live ammunition has placed up to 35 percent of Gaza’s agricultural land off-s to farmers,” it said.
The Israeli and Palestinian sides reached an Egypt-brokered open-ended ceasefire deal on 26 August to end the 51-day-long Israeli onslaught on the strip.
Over 2,200 Palestinians, overwhelmingly civilians, were killed and 11,000 others were injured during the onslaught that resulted in the demolition of thousands of houses.
T.R
