From the Electronic Intifada – Abdullah al-Najjar is the last boat maker in Gaza. Fully aware that he plies a vanishing trade, Abdullah, 61, is nonetheless trying to keep it alive in a time-honored way. He is training his son Jamil, 25, so that his skills can be handed on to the next generation. Abdullah himself began learning how to build boats when he was in his early teens. He was taught how to do so by an uncle. “Boat making is almost nonexistent in Gaza today,” said Abdullah. “That is because of the high costs involved, the fact that raw materials are scarce and the restrictions placed on fishers.” Gaza’s maritime traditions have deep roots. In ancient times, a Greek port known as Antidon was  established  near present-day Gaza City. Fishing – particularly for tuna, sardines, shrimp and squid – has long been a key source of livelihood for Palestinians living along the coast. Despite surviving for so long, the traditions are now at grave risk because of Isr...

From Wafa News Agency – GAZA, Wednesday, March 4, 2020 (WAFA) – Israeli navy today opened gunfire towards Palestinian fishermen who were sailing off the Gaza shore to the west of the town of Beit Lahia, north of the enclave, reported WAFA correspondent. No injuries were reported, however.   more

Israeli naval boats opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the besieged Gaza Strip on two separate occasions Sunday night and Monday morning, with no injuries reported in either case. Fishermen told Ma’an that Israeli forces opened live fire at fishermen off the coast of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday evening, forcing fishermen to sail to shore who said they feared for their safety. Separately on Monday morning, Israeli naval forces opened fire at fishermen sailing north of Gaza City. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an she would look into reports of the incidents. Israeli army incursions inside the besieged Palestinian territory have long been a near-daily occurrence, as the Israeli army regularly opens fire on unarmed Palestinian fishermen and farmers along the border areas if they approach Israel’s unilaterally declared “buffer zone,” which lies on both the land and sea sides of Gaza. more

Israeli forces opened live fire at Palestinian lands east of Gaza city, while Israeli naval forces also opened fire on fishermen off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the northern part of the besieged enclave on Thursday morning. Witnesses told Ma’an that Israeli forces stationed behind the border fence between Gaza and Israel opened live fire at Palestinian farmers. No injuries were reported. Witnesses also told Ma’an that Israeli forces opened live fire at fishermen off the coast of Beit Lahiya, without any injuries being reported. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an she would look into reports. more

Israeli gunboats opened heavy machine gun fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip in the early predawn hours Sunday morning, forcing fishermen to sail back to shore, with no injuries or damages reported, fishermen told Ma'an. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma'an they were looking into reports. On Friday morning, Israeli forces shot and injured a Palestinian fisherman off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip with a rubber-coated steel bullet. Gazan fishermen, whose numbers are estimated to be around 4,000, have suffered from the near decade-long siege of the Gaza Strip, which limits their entry into the sea to just six nautical miles, in accordance with the ceasefire agreement signed with Palestinian factions in 2014. more

Israeli naval forces Saturday morning opened live fire at Gazan fishermen off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip. Witnesses told Ma’an that Israeli forces opened live fire at the fishermen working off the coast of the northern part of the besieged enclave, forcing them to head back to Gaza’s shores. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an she would look into reports on the incident. The Israeli army regularly open fires on Palestinian fishermen and farmers along the border areas, despite a ceasefire agreement that ended the 2014 war. There have also been intermittent reports of Israeli forces attempting to sink the boats of fishermen as they approach Israel’s unilaterally declared “buffer zone,” which lies on both the land and sea sides of Gaza. more

The search for a missing Gaza fisherman entered it’s third day on Friday, as Israeli forces reportedly aided in the search for Muhammad Ahmad al-Hassi, 33, who went missing after an encounter with Israeli naval forces, in which locals claimed that the forces purposely attacked and sunk al-Hassi’s boat. Head of the Gaza Fishermen's Union Nizar Ayyash told Ma'an Friday that Israeli forces were still looking for al-Hassi in the area where the attack took place, as well as in the northern sea areas, considering that the sea current’s direction is to the north. The incident, which took place late Wednesday night, has sparked anger in the besieged coastal enclave. A sit-in protest was organized on Thursday condemning the “Israeli crime” and demanding an international intervention to protect Gaza fishermen and prosecute Israel for its crimes. Gazan fishermen, whose numbers are estimated to be around 4,000, have suffered from a near decade-long siege of the Gaza Strip, which limits ...

A Palestinian fisherman went missing on Wednesday night after his boat was attacked by Israeli naval forces off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources said. The head of the Gaza fishermen’s union, Nizar Ayyash, said that an Israeli navy ship attacked and sunk a boat belonging to Muhammad al-Hissi at around 10:30 p.m. off the coast of Beit Lahiya, and that al-Hissi went missing shortly afterwards. Ayyash added that searches were being conducted to find the fisherman. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma'an that Israeli naval forces were escorting a Palestinian fishing boat which had deviated from the Israeli-designated fishing zone to a port on Wednesday evening when "the Israeli vessel collided with another Palestinian vessel which was not visible." more

Israeli navy ships opened fire towards Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the besieged Gaza Strip on Tuesday morning, local sources told Ma’an. Fishermen said that that Israeli forces fired warning shots at them while they were fishing off the coast of al-Waha, northwest of Gaza City. No injuries were reported. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma'an they were looking into reports. Israeli military incursions inside the besieged Gaza Strip and near the “buffer zone" which lies on both land and sea sides of Gaza, have long been a near-daily occurrence. more

Israeli naval forces Wednesday opened live fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of al-Sudaniyya in the northern Gaza Strip. Witnesses told Ma’an that Israeli boats opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats and forced the fishermen back to the shores of the besieged coastal enclave. No injuries or damages were reported. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an she would look into reports on the incident. Israeli military incursions inside the besieged Gaza Strip and near the “buffer zone" which lies on both land and sea sides of Gaza, have long been a near-daily occurrence. Palestinians who work near the “buffer zone” often come under fire from military forces, as the Israeli military has not made clear the precise area of the designated zone. more

Israeli naval forces opened fire at Palestinian fishermen boats off the coast of the southern and northern Gaza Strip on Sunday. Witnesses said Israeli naval boats opened fire at fishing boats off the coast of Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza Strip, and chased boats near Rafah in the south. No injuries were reported in either incident. An Israeli army spokesperson said they were looking into reports. The Israeli army regularly opens fire on Palestinian fishermen and farmers along the border and the coast, despite a ceasefire agreement that ended the 2014 war. The practice has in effect destroyed much of the agricultural and fishing sectors of the blockaded coastal enclave. more

Israeli naval forces opened fire on Monday at fishermen off the northern coast of the besieged Gaza Strip. The fishermen said that Israeli forces opened fire at them and pumped wastewater at one of the fishermen’s boats, forcing them to escape to land for their safety. No injuries were reported. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an they would look into the reports. Earlier this month, witnesses said that Israeli naval forces attempted to drown a Palestinian fishing boat by pumping wastewater in its direction, causing the fisherman to faint. more

GAZA (Ma’an) – Israeli military boats Thursday opened live fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip, according to witnesses. Witnesses told Ma’an that one of the Israeli military boats chased the fishermen’s boats before opening live fire on them. Meanwhile, Israeli forces also fired live ammunition at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. No damage or injuries were reported in either incident. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an she would look into reports on the two incidents. The Israeli army regularly opens fire on Palestinian fishermen and farmers along the border and the coast, despite a ceasefire agreement that ended the 2014 war. The practice has in effect destroyed much of the agricultural and fishing sectors of the blockaded coastal enclave. more

Israeli naval forces opened fire at Palestinian fishermen off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip on Sunday evening, according to witnesses. Local fishermen told Ma’an that Israeli forces opened fire on them while they were out at sea, off the coast of the northern town of Beit Lahiya, forcing them to sail back to shore. No injuries were reported. Israeli military incursions inside the besieged Gaza Strip and near the “buffer zone" which lies on both land and sea sides of Gaza, have long been a near-daily occurrence. Palestinians who work near the “buffer zone” often come under fire from military forces, as the Israeli military has not made clear the precise area of the designated zone. The Israeli army regularly open fires on Palestinian fishermen and farmers along the border areas, despite a ceasefire agreement that ended the 2014 war. more

The Israeli navy opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday, locals said. Witnesses told Ma’an that Israeli navy boats opened fire at fishing boats off the coast of Beit Lahiya in the blockaded Gaza Strip. No injuries were reported. Israeli forces deployed at the borderline between the besieged Palestinian territory and Israel also reportedly opened fire at Palestinian agricultural lands east of Rafah City. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that they were looking into the reports. Israeli military incursions inside the besieged Gaza Strip and near the “buffer zone" which lies on both land and sea sides of Gaza, have long been a near-daily occurrence. Palestinians who work near the “buffer zone” between the Palestinian enclave and Israel often come under fire from military forces, as the Israeli military has not made clear the precise area of the designated zone. more

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli naval forces Tuesday evening opened live fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of the northern Gaza Strip. Coordinator for fishermen committees Zakariya Bakr told Ma’an that Israeli naval ships opened fire at fishing boats, after reportedly chasing the boats for two nautical miles. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an she would look into reports. Israeli military incursions inside the besieged Gaza Strip and near the “buffer zone" which lies on both land and sea sides of Gaza, have long been a near-daily occurrence. Palestinians who work near the “buffer zone” between the Palestinian enclave and Israel often come under fire from military forces, as the Israeli military has not made clear the precise area of the designated zone. The Israeli army regularly open fires on Palestinian fishermen and farmers along the border areas, despite a ceasefire agreement that ended the 2014 war. more

Israeli forces stationed along the border fence between Israel and the Gaza Strip opened fire at Palestinian farmlands east of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday, according to locals. Witnesses said Israeli forces opened live fire at farmlands near the military tower in the al-Sanati area east of Khan Yunis on Sunday morning. On Gaza's western sea border, Israeli naval forces also opened fire at fishing boats near the al-Sudaniyyah area in the north. No injuries were reported in either incident. An Israeli army spokeswoman said she was looking into reports. more

Israeli naval forces detained four Palestinian fishermen while they were on a fishing trip Wednesday morning off the coast of Gaza City, Palestinian security sources told Ma’an. The sources said Israeli navy confiscated two fishing boats, subsequently taking them to Israel’s Ashdod port. In a separate incident in Gaza on Wednesday morning, Israeli military vehicles reportedly crossed the borders into the besieged coastal enclave, where Israeli forces used bulldozers to level land east of Rafah in the south. Witnesses said they saw four bulldozers leveling land near the border fence. On Tuesday night, an Israeli airstrike reportedly hit an agricultural area in Juhr Addik village in the southern Gaza Strip. No casualties were reported. more

A Palestinian was injured after Israeli naval forces on Tuesday opened fire on fishermen, detaining four and confiscating their boats, as Israeli forces also opened fire on farmers and leveled lands elsewhere in the Gaza Strip. The detained fishermen were identified as Hasan Miqdad, Bashir Abu Riyala, and his brothers Khalid and Rajab, according to Nizar Ayyash, speaker of the union of fisherman in the Gaza Strip. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that two boats diverted from the designated fishing zone off the coast of Gaza City, as the army ordered them to turn back. However, the fishermen continued to sail and Israeli soldiers fired warning shots into the air before detaining the fishermen for questioning. The spokesperson added that one Palestinian was injured during the incident and evacuated to a hospital. Since the beginning of 2016, Israeli forces have detained at least 67 fishermen off the coast of the Gaza Strip, with the majority being later released from Israeli c...

Israeli naval forces on Sunday morning opened fire on Palestinian fishermen, before detaining 10 fishermen and seizing five boats in a separate incident in the northern Gaza Strip. Locals told Ma’an that Israeli forces opened fire on fishermen sailing off the coast of al-Wahah near the northern Gaza coast, with no injuries reported. Meanwhile, 10 fishermen were detained by Israeli naval forces nearby and taken to an unknown location, as five of their boats were confiscated. Spokesperson for the Union of Agricultural Work Committees Zakariyya Bakir identified the detained as Rasim Ishaq Zayid, Muhammad Ishaq Zayid, Saqir Yunis Zayid, Ayman Yunis Zayid, Asad Muhammad al-Sultan, Khalid Mahmoud Zayid, Muhammad Mahmud Sultan, Ayman Mahmoud Sultan, Ahmad Muhammad Zayid, and Ibrahim Zayid. An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an they were looking into reports. more