Control of the territorial waters

From B'tselem, The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories.

"While there is no fence along Gaza 's coastline, residents do not have open access to the sea. Palestinians wanting to go to sea need to request a permit from Israel . Those who obtain a permit are not allowed to sail far from shore. Anyone who violates the prohibition puts his life at risk: in the past, Israeli patrol boats have fired at boats that exceeded the maximum distance allowed. Israel 's Navy patrols the waters and thwarts attempts to enter or leave Gaza by sea.

In the Interim Agreement, signed by Israel and the PLO as part of the Oslo peace process, Israel undertook to allow fishing boats from Gaza to go some twenty nautical miles (about thirty-seven kilometers) from the coastline (except for a few areas, to which they were prohibited entry). However, Israel did not in fact issue permits to all applicants, and allowed fishing up to a distance of no more than ten nautical miles. Following implementation of the disengagement plan, Israel reduced the fishing area even more, and since the abduction of Cpl. Shalit, on 25 June 2006, fishermen have not been allowed to go further than three nautical miles from shore. As a result, the fishing sector in Gaza , which provides a livelihood to many Gazan families and is an important source of food for Gazans, suffered a harsh blow.

In the agreements signed by the parties since the beginning of the Oslo peace process, the sides repeatedly agreed to work toward building and operating a seaport in Gaza . In the summer of 2000, infrastructure work began to build the port, but in October of that year Israel bombed the construction site in response to the killing of two soldiers in Ramallah by Palestinians. As a result, the donor states ceased funding the project, and no work has been done on the seaport since then. In the AMA , of November 2005, Israel agreed to allow construction of the port. Moreover, in order to assure that foreign donors and investors would not be deterred from investing in the project, Israel undertook to guarantee that it would not again interfere with the operation of the port and to cooperate in establishing the security and other relevant arrangements which would need to be made prior to the opening of the port. To date, no action has been taken in this matter. "

Note of the week

"Four Israeli military boats opened fire and rounded up 14 Palestinian fishing boats in Rafah and forced them to sail towards deeper waters. IDF vessels tied the boats and ordered the fishermen to jump in the water and swim individually towards the military ships. A total of 54 Palestinian fishermen were interrogated before later being released while two others were arrested. "

source: OCHA, weekly report 14 March- 20 March 2007 (OCHA is the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs)

Weekly report+News Footage

OCHA reports that on the week of March 7th-13th 2007:

• two Palestinian fishermen were injured when Israeli Defence Force (IDF) gunboats opened fire at three fishing boats in Rafah.
• The IDF opened fire a total of eight times at Palestinians either from the border fence or out at sea.
  

This reminded me of a ICRC news footage on Rafah fishermen struggle for survival. The footage which is worth taking a look at includes an interview of Nizar Ayash, Representative of Fisherman’s Union which summarises well Gazan fishers' problems:
"First, one of the major problems is marketing the fish, because it is forbidden to sell the fish in other Palestinian markets. Second is the limited fishing zone, just 38 kilometres along the beaches of Gaza Strip. Third is the fact that the Israeli Navy regularly shoots at the fishermen when they are out at sea."

Fishing is inherited in Gaza

"Fishing is inherited in Gaza. I grew up knowing nothing else. I can be nothing but a fisherman," Kahlout says in an article posted on IRIN webiste on Sept. 2006 recalling the long tradition of fishing in Gaza.

There are 2,500 registered fishers in the Strip of Gaza and a further 2,500 people employed in the fishing industry (e.g. fish marketing, boat services, boat repair and maintenance). Out of the 1,4 million Palestinians living in the Strip, it is estimated that approximately 35,000 people rely on the fishing industry as a source of food or income.

The fisheries sector is relatively small compared to the major fisheries of neighbouring countries. Yet, for the economy of Gaza (characterised by a high unemployment rate, a severe shortage of job opportunities, and a lack of natural resources), the fisheries sector has been and could be a significant source of high protein food, employment, income and foreign exchange earnings.

Yet fishing has been subject to restrictions and bans by Israel which "(...) significantly scaled down the amount, size, and variety of fish that fishermen can catch," Tareq Saqer, Director General of Fish Resources in the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture, says.

Saqer says that the "unfair restrictions" placed on Palestinian fishermen cost the fishing sector millions of dollars in fishing equipment destroyed by Israeli naval forces in addition to millions more in lost income from fish sales.

[More on restrictions on to the IRIN website article. IRIN stands for Integrated Regional Information Networks. It is part of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, but its services are editorially independent.]

A fishy watch

Jon Elmer, in this article Israelis Keep a Fishy Watch dated February 14th 2007, describes the situation of the fishing industry in the Strip of Gaza highlighting its importance to Gaza's 1.5 million population.

If there is not a drastic change in Israeli-imposed ban on Gaza's fishermen, the entire fishing industry will have collapsed by the end of 2007, warns Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Department of Fisheries. Alarming statement considering that the fishing industry is an important source of proteins and employment in Gaza.

The report by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) due to be released this month proves the PNA Department of Fisheries right. The report illustrates how restrictions on trade and movement experienced over 2006 have led to the progressive fragmentation of the economy, dragging previously self-reliant sectors of society such as fishermen, but also traders and small shop owners, into poverty and debt.

23 Feb. 07: IDF prohibits fishing off Gaza coast and abuse fishermen

In September 2005, Israel completed its Gaza disengagement plan and declared the end of the military government in the Gaza Strip. Yet Israel continues to forbid fishers to sail off the coast of Gaza and occasionally shoots at Palestinian fishers.

Lacking other source of employment, some fishers take the risk and go to sea. In a press release date 23 february 2007, B’Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, tells the story of some of them including of 'Adnan al-Badwil who had his fishing boat gunfired by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF).