GAZA, July 14, 2015 (WAFA) –
Israeli naval boats Saturday opened machine gunfire on Palestinian fishing
boats offshore the northern and central Gaza Strip, reported witnesses.
Israeli naval boats opened
machine gunfire on fishing boats sailing within the unilaterally-imposed
six-nautical-miles fishing zone offshore al-Sudaniyya area to the northwest of
Gaza city and Az-Zawayda and Deir al-Balah in central Gaza Strip.
No injuries were reported among
the fishermen who apparently fled the scene for fear of being injured, killed
or arrested.
Meanwhile, forces stationed in
borderline military watchtowers along the border in central Gaza Strip
indiscriminately opened heavy fire on civilian homes and farmlands to the east
of Wadi al-Salqa, south of Deir al-Balah, and Abu Samra area. There were no
reports of casualties, nonetheless.
Israeli navy and troops routinely
open fire on Palestinian fishermen sailing within the six-nautical-miles zone
and farmlands along the border, flagrantly violating the ceasefire deal that
was reached in August 2014
Furthermore, Palestinians farmers
are often targeted by Israeli forces if they approach borderline land that
Israeli forces have deemed off-limits to Palestinians.
The buffer zone extends between
500 meters and 1500 meters into the Strip, effectively turning local farms into
no-go zones.
According to UNOCHA, 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.
Israel has imposed a tightened blockade since
2007 after Hamas won the democratic legislative election and took over power in
the strip.
The current six-nautical-mile
fishing zone falls drastically short of the twenty nautical miles allocated to
Palestinian fishermen in the 1993 Oslo Accords.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Center
for Human Rights (PCHR) documented during June alone 10 shooting incidents that
resulted in the wounding of four Palestinian fishermen while sailing off Beit
Lahia shore in the north of the Gaza Strip.
“In addition to damaging fishing
equipment and tools. Moreover, PCHR documented the detention of 14 fishermen
and confiscation of five fishing boats and nets.”
Noting lack of Israeli naval
forces’ compliance with the ceasefire agreement concluded between Israel and
Palestinian armed groups under Egyptian auspices on 26 August 2014,
including allowing Palestinian fishermen
to sail within six nautical miles in the Gaza Sea, PCHR reported that all
attacks took place within the distance of six nautical miles, which it said,
“proves that Israeli forces' policies aim to tighten restrictions on the Gaza
Strip's fishermen and their livelihoods.”
K.F./T.R.
