Gaza fisherman tests waters in legal fight over Israeli blockade

Israel has been accused of misusing provisions of international law on armed conflict regarding the seizure of enemy ships by imposing them on civilians, particularly the Gaza fishermen. (AFP)

Short Url

https://arab.news/gfdjq

Updated 22 March 2023

AFP

March 22, 2023 04:25

Gaza fisherman tests waters in legal fight over Israeli blockade

Palestinians argue it is an effective siege that has crippled Gaza’s economy
Fishing zone currently extends to only between 11km and 28km off the Gaza coast

Updated 22 March 2023

AFP

March 22, 2023 04:25

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: Gaza fisherman Jihad Al-Hissi is used to rough waters but he now faces a new storm. An Israeli court may seize his boat after he breached the limits of the enclave’s fishing zone.
The issue is crucial for thousands in the blockaded Palestinian territory of 2.3 million people, where fishing in the Mediterranean Sea remains one of the few economic lifelines.
Hissi, 55, with square shoulders and a scruffy beard, told his story at Gaza’s dock early one morning as fishermen sold their overnight catch of sea bream, prawns and sardines.
For now he has his boat, but its fate is uncertain as Israeli authorities argue before a Haifa court that it should be permanently taken away.
The vessel, used to catch gamberi prawns off southern Gaza near Egypt, is named the “Hajj Rajab,” but its owners have erased the name from its yellow hull.
“I don’t want the Israelis to spot us and seize my boat,” said Hissi, who had a violent encounter with an Israeli naval patrol boat more than a year ago.
Israel says its land, air and sea blockade of Gaza is needed to protect it from rocket and other attacks from Hamas and to prevent arms smuggling to the Islamist militant movement.
Palestinians argue it is an effective siege that has crippled Gaza’s economy and further impoverished its people, while the fishing limits deny it crucial protein.
Last year’s incident came on February 14 when Hissi’s vessel ventured beyond the maritime zone that Israel declared in 2007, the year Hamas seized power in Gaza.
Jihad’s brother Nihad, who was at sea that day, said that “100 meters beyond the area, we were surprised by three Israeli boats with commandos.
“They attacked our boat ... tied us up and arrested us.”
The boat’s cabin is still damaged from the water cannon blasts and the rubber-encased bullets fired by the Israeli forces that day.
Israel, in documents presented to court, accuses Hissi of having “repeatedly violated the security restrictions imposed by the Israeli army in the maritime zone adjacent to Gaza.”
The Israeli non-government group Gisha has helped defend Hissi and in September secured the boat’s return, but Israeli authorities now demand the court “permanently confiscate” the vessel.
The fishing zone allowed by Israel currently extends only to the heavily fished areas between six and 15 nautical miles (about 11 to 28 kilometers) off the Gaza coast.
Hissi argues this is less than the maximum of 20 nautical miles agreed in the 1990s under the Israeli-Palestinian agreements in Oslo.
But he also admits to going even beyond that from time to time, in search of shrimp which nets around $21 per kilogram (2.2 pounds) and can make the difference between profit and loss.
The legal fight is closely watched by thousands of fishermen in Gaza.
If Hissi’s boat is permanently confiscated, this would spell “a serious threat to the thousands of fishermen in Gaza, because it aims to put an end to fishing,” charged Nizar Ayyash, president of the union representing the 4,000 fishermen in Gaza.
The court battle comes amid a rise in Israel’s temporary seizures of fishing boats suspected of smuggling or breaching the fishing zone.
Last year saw 23 boat confiscations, the highest number since 2018, according to the Palestinian non-governmental group Al-Mezan.
The group also recorded 474 security incidents involving Gaza fishermen last year, the most in five years.
Gisha lawyer Muna Haddad argued that the case was “outrageous” and came amid “an unprecedented escalation in targeting those fishermen.”
Haddad accused Israel of misusing provisions of international law on armed conflict regarding the seizure of enemy ships by imposing them on civilians.
In the court documents seen by AFP, Israel claims Hissi “abused” legal protections and that his crew had “threatened” the safety of soldiers during the maritime seizure.
Israeli military officials assured AFP they wanted to support Gaza’s economy — but without compromising Israel’s security.
“We fish to survive,” said Hissi, whose family once lived in Jaffa, now part of Tel Aviv, before fleeing to Gaza during the 1948 war.
“And we will continue to fish even when our profits are low. I don’t know how to do anything else in life anyway.”

Topics: Gaza Israel

Anti-Daesh coalition forces targeted in Iraq and Syria: US official

Updated 49 sec ago

AFP

December 12, 2023 00:10

Anti-Daesh coalition forces targeted in Iraq and Syria: US official

Washington has recorded at least 92 attacks in Iraq and Syria since October 17, 10 days after the war between Israel and Hamas broke out

Updated 49 sec ago

AFP

December 12, 2023 00:10

BAGHDAD: A drone and rockets targeted two military bases in Iraq and Syria on Monday housing forces of the international coalition against the Daesh group, a US military official said.
Both attacks were claimed by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a loose formation of armed groups affiliated with the Hashed Al-Shaabi coalition of former paramilitaries that are now integrated into Iraq’s regular armed forces.
These pro-Iran groups violently oppose US backing for Israel in its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which erupted on October 7 when the Islamist group launched a deadly attack into Israel.
The United States leads the international coalition battling jihadists in Iraq and neighboring Syria, and its forces have come under repeated attack in recent weeks.
On Monday in western Iraq, a drone attack targeted the Ain Al-Asad air base, without causing casualties or damage, the US military official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
And in northeast Syria, “several rockets” were fired at a base in the Al-Shaddadi region, the official added.
Washington has recorded at least 92 attacks in Iraq and Syria since October 17, 10 days after the war between Israel and Hamas broke out.
Early on Friday, salvos of rockets were fired at the American embassy in Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone for the first time since the Gaza war began.
At least five attacks targeted US troops and the international coalition in Syria and Iraq that day.
On Saturday the Iran-backed Hezbollah Brigades issued a statement saying the attacks represented “new rules of engagement,” and that they would continue until the last American soldier left Iraq.
There are roughly 2,500 US troops in Iraq and some 900 in Syria as part of international efforts to prevent a resurgence of IS.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has accused the Hezbollah Brigades and another pro-Iran group, Harakat Al-Nujaba, of being behind most of the attacks on coalition personnel.
A US statement on Friday following a call with Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani said Austin stressed “that the United States reserves the right to act in self-defense against those launching any attack against US personnel.”
The Pentagon has launched several strikes against fighters belonging to both groups in Iraq, as well as in Syria against sites linked to Iran.
On Friday, Sudani in a statement said targeting embassies “is unacceptable,” and called on Iraq’s security forces to track down those who fired rockets at the American embassy so they could be brought to justice.

Topics: Anti-Daesh coalition Iraq Syria Daesh

Israeli defense chief resists pressure to halt Gaza offensive, says campaign will ‘take time’

Updated 13 min 7 sec ago

December 12, 2023 00:05

Israeli defense chief resists pressure to halt Gaza offensive, says campaign will ‘take time’

Gallant said the next phase would be lower-intensity fighting against “pockets of resistance” and would require Israeli troops to maintain their freedom of operation. “That’s a sign the next phase has begun,” he said

Updated 13 min 7 sec ago

December 12, 2023 00:05

TEL AVIV, Israel: Israel’s defense minister on Monday pushed back against international calls to wrap up the country’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip, saying the current phase of the operation against the Hamas militant group will “take time.”
Yoav Gallant, a member of Israel’s three-man war cabinet, remained unswayed by a growing chorus of criticism over the widespread damage and heavy civilian death toll caused by the two-month military campaign. The UN secretary-general and leading Arab states have called for an immediate cease-fire. The United States has urged Israel to reduce civilian casualties, though it has provided unwavering diplomatic and military support.
Israel launched the campaign after Hamas militants stormed across its southern border on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people and kidnapping about 240 others.
Two months of airstrikes, coupled with a fierce ground invasion, have resulted in the deaths of over 17,000 Palestinians, according to health officials in the Hamas-run territory. They do not give a breakdown between civilians and combatants but say that roughly two-thirds of the dead have been women and minors. Nearly 85 percent of the territory’s 2.3 million people have been driven from their homes.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Gallant refused to commit to any firm deadlines, but he signaled that the current phase, characterized by heavy ground fighting backed up by air power, could stretch on for weeks and that further military activity could continue for months.
“We are going to defend ourselves. I am fighting for Israel’s future,” he said.
Gallant said the next phase would be lower-intensity fighting against “pockets of resistance” and would require Israeli troops to maintain their freedom of operation. “That’s a sign the next phase has begun,” he said.
Gallant spoke as Israeli forces battled militants in and around the southern city of Khan Younis, where the military opened a new line of attack last week. Battles were also still underway in parts of Gaza City and the urban Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, where large areas have been reduced to rubble and many thousands of civilians are still trapped by the fighting.
Israel has pledged to keep fighting until it removes Hamas from power, dismantles its military capabilities and gets back all of the hostages. It says Hamas still has 117 hostages and the remains of 20 people who died in captivity or during the initial attack. More than 100 captives were freed last month during a weeklong truce.
Gallant keeps a framed picture on the desk of his spacious office with pictures of all the children taken hostage. All but two are marked with small hearts, signaling their release from captivity.
HEAVY FIGHTING
In central Gaza, an Israeli airstrike overnight flattened a residential building where some 80 people were staying in the Maghazi refugee camp, residents said.
Ahmed Al-Qarah, a neighbor who was digging through the rubble for survivors, said he knew of only six people who made it out. “The rest are under the building,” he said. At a nearby hospital, family members sobbed over the bodies of several of the dead from the strike.
In Khan Younis, Radwa Abu Frayeh saw heavy Israeli strikes overnight around the European Hospital, where the UN humanitarian office says tens of thousands of people have sought shelter. She said one strike hit a home close to hers late Sunday.
“The building shook,” she said. “We thought it was the end and we would die.”
Gallant blamed Hamas for the heavy civilian death toll, saying that the militant group maintains a network of tunnels underneath schools, streets and hospitals.
He claimed that Israel has inflicted heavy damage on Hamas, killing half of the group’s battalion commanders and destroying many tunnels, command centers and weapons facilities.
Israeli officials have said some 7,000 Hamas militants — roughly one-quarter of the group’s fighting force — have been killed throughout the war and that 500 militants have been detained in Gaza the past month. The claims could not be independently verified. Israel says 104 of its soldiers have been killed in the Gaza ground offensive.
The result, he said, is that in the northern Gaza Strip, Hamas has been reduced to “islands of resistance” acting on the whims of local commanders.
In southern Gaza, he said the situation is different. “They are still organized militarily,” he said.
Gallant also said Israel has recovered “hundreds of terabytes” of information about Hamas from computers its troops have seized.
Despite the reported battlefield setbacks, Hamas on Monday fired a barrage of rockets that set off sirens in Tel Aviv, where Gallant’s office and Israeli military headquarters are located.
One person was lightly wounded, according to the Magen David Adom rescue service. Israel’s Channel 12 television broadcast footage of a cratered road and damage to cars and buildings in a suburb.
HARROWING JOURNEY

The UN humanitarian office, known as OCHA, described a harrowing journey through the battle zone in northern Gaza by a UN and Red Crescent convoy over the weekend that made the first delivery of medical supplies to the north in more than a week. It said an ambulance and UN truck were hit by gunfire on the way to Al-Ahly Hospital to drop off the supplies.
The convoy then evacuated 19 patients but was delayed for inspections by Israeli forces on the way south. OCHA said one patient died, and a paramedic was detained for hours, interrogated and reportedly beaten.
The fighting in Jabaliya has trapped hundreds of staff, patients and displaced people inside hospitals, most of which are unable to function.
Two staff members were killed over the weekend by clashes outside Al-Awda Hospital, OCHA said. Shelling and live ammunition hit Al-Yemen Al-Saeed Hospital, killing an unknown number of displaced people sheltering inside, it said. It did not say which side was behind the fire.
HARSH CONDITIONS IN THE SOUTH
With Israel allowing little aid into Gaza and the UN largely unable to distribute it amid the fighting, Palestinians face severe shortages of food, water and other basic goods.
Israel said it will start conducting inspections of aid trucks Tuesday at its Kerem Shalom crossing, a step meant to increase the amount of relief entering Gaza. Currently, Israel’s Nitzana crossing is the only inspection point in operation. All trucks then enter from Egypt through the Rafah crossing. Aid workers, however, say they are largely unable to distribute aid beyond the Rafah area because of the fighting elsewhere.
Israel has urged people to flee to what it says are safe areas in the south. The fighting in and around Khan Younis has pushed tens of thousands toward the town of Rafah and other areas along the border with Egypt.
Still, airstrikes have continued even in areas to which Palestinians are told to flee.
A strike in Rafah early Monday heavily damaged a residential building, killing at least nine people, all but one of them women, according to Associated Press reporters who saw the bodies at the hospital.
The aid group Doctors Without Borders said people in the south are also falling ill as they pack into crowded shelters or sleep in tents in open areas.
Nicholas Papachrysostomou, the group’s emergency coordinator in Gaza, said “every other patient” at a clinic in Rafah has a respiratory infection after prolonged exposure to cold and rain. In shelters where hundreds share a single toilet, diarrhea is widespread, particularly among children, he said.

Topics: War on Gaza Palestine Gaza US

Antique stoves in Gaza the only way to cook during war

Updated 11 December 2023

AFP

December 11, 2023 23:08

Antique stoves in Gaza the only way to cook during war

Hundreds of thousands of civilians have fled northern Gaza due to relentless bombardment and a ground invasion by Israel, leaving their belongings behind

Updated 11 December 2023

AFP

December 11, 2023 23:08

RAFAH: In a workshop in the war-torn and besieged Gaza Strip, Ibrahim Shouman is bringing old brass stoves back to life, giving hope to displaced people deprived of gas for cooking.
With a squeeze of pliers, a new wick, and a refill of homemade fuel, a flash of fire miraculously begins to crackle.
“People have gone back to the old times and are bringing their brass camping stoves for repair because there is no gas or fuel available,” Shouman said in Rafah in the south of Gaza, near the border with Egypt.
Hundreds of thousands of civilians have fled northern Gaza due to relentless bombardment and a ground invasion by Israel, leaving their belongings behind.
The civilians hoped to be safer in the south, but the Israeli military has progressively extended its strikes across the tiny coastal territory in its war aiming to destroy Hamas.

HIGHLIGHT

Vast areas of Gaza have been devastated and the UN estimates 1.9 million of Gaza’s 2.4 million people have been displaced, facing dire shortages of food, fuel, water and medicine.

Vast areas of Gaza have been devastated and the UN estimates 1.9 million of Gaza’s 2.4 million people have been displaced, facing dire shortages of food, fuel, water and medicine.
“People have been searching all over for firewood, but it’s no longer available,” Shouman said. “They would have to buy it for a higher price, and people have very little money left.”
In his workshops, clients wait patiently as he rubs, twists and adjusts parts of decades old stoves’ pistons, burners and fuel tanks.
“These camping stoves were used 100 years ago, this is how far we’ve regressed,” said Adnan Abu Al-Aish, 55, who has been desperately searching for a way to cook his meager rations of semolina and vegetables.
With a shortage of kerosene, Shouman fuels the stoves with a mix of motor oil and home heating oil.
“There is diesel available but it’s very hard to find,” he said. “You need to spend an entire day searching for it.
“There isn’t even firewood, people are searching for pieces of cardboard thrown on the ground,” he added. “One has to make do.”
Mohammed Al-Malahi also brought his old stove, which he said belonged to his great-great-grandfather, saying: “What can we do? We need it to create fire and cook.”
Shouman said that, in these dire circumstances, the trusty old stoves “get the job done.”

Topics: War on Gaza

Downing of drones in Red Sea ‘legitimate defense’: France

Updated 11 December 2023

AFP

December 11, 2023 22:34

Downing of drones in Red Sea ‘legitimate defense’: France

In a statement posted on social media, the Houthis said they will prevent the passage of ships heading to Israel if humanitarian aid is not allowed into Gaza

Updated 11 December 2023

AFP

December 11, 2023 22:34

PARIS: A French frigate that shot down two drones in the Red Sea was acting in self-defense after coming under attack from the unmanned aerial vehicles, the Foreign Ministry in Paris said on Monday.
The French general staff reported on Sunday that the Languedoc frigate, operating in the Red Sea, had opened fire on two drones heading straight toward it from the Yemen coast, destroying both.
The incident came after Houthis threatened on Saturday to attack any vessels heading to Israeli ports unless food and medicine were allowed into the besieged Gaza Strip.
The Foreign Ministry said the drones were engaged in an “attack” on its vessel and had been downed in “legitimate defense.”
The incident occurred amid “attacks and acts of piracy committed by Houthis in the Red Sea,” which represented a “worrying increase of assaults on the freedom of navigation in that zone,” it added.
The ministry urged the Houthis to “immediately stop attacks on civilians” and the freedom of movement.

FASTFACT

The Foreign Ministry urged the Houthis to ‘immediately stop attacks on civilians’ and the freedom of movement.

France was closely following developments in the Red Sea and called “on all actors to avoid any regional flare-up.”
The general staff said on Sunday the drone interceptions happened at 2030 GMT and 2230 GMT on Saturday, 110 km from the Yemeni coast and the port of Hodeidah, which is under Houthi control.
The drones “were flying directly toward the vessel,” the general staff said. The frigate used surface-to-air missiles of the Aster 15 type, designed for defense against short- to medium-range threats, a military source said.
The French navy had not used surface-to-air missiles in self-defense before.
The incident came amid heightened tensions in the Red Sea and surrounding waters, following a series of maritime attacks by Houthis since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7.
In a statement posted on social media, the Houthis said they will prevent the passage of ships heading to Israel if humanitarian aid is not allowed into Gaza.
The Houthis have recently attacked ships they allege have direct links to Israel but the latest threat widens the scope of their targets.
Hamas welcomed the Houthi stance as “bold and courageous.”
A US destroyer shot down three drones earlier this month while providing assistance to commercial ships in the Red Sea that were targeted by attacks from Yemen, according to Washington.
It condemned what it said was “a direct threat” to maritime security.
Saturday’s incident was the first time that Houthis had targeted a French military vessel since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7.

Topics: Red Sea France Yemen Houthis US

Jordanian companies receive over $40m in government grants

Updated 11 December 2023

Arab News

December 11, 2023 21:30

Jordanian companies receive over $40m in government grants

Fifty-four of these companies are led by women, and seven are getting ready to export for the first time

Updated 11 December 2023

Arab News

December 11, 2023 21:30

LONDON: One hundred and thirty-five Jordanian companies have been granted a total of JD29.6 million ($41.8 million) in non-refundable agreements from the Industrial Support and Development Fund, it was announced on Monday.

The funding accounts for 57.2 percent of the estimated JD51.763 million required for various industrial facility development projects, Petra news agency reported.

During a ceremony at the Amman Chamber of Industry, Minister of Industry, Trade, and Supply Yousef Shamali said the program aims to increase total sales by JD76.1 million, reflecting a growth of 14.3 percent.

It also aims to increase exports by JD30.84 million and create more than 1,700 job opportunities for Jordanians, including 622 for women.

The initiative is part of the Jordanian government’s broader commitment to revitalizing local industry, with the goal of improving its competitiveness, reducing unemployment, and stimulating the country’s business environment, Petra added.

Shamali emphasized the diverse nature of the recipients, which included five large, 77 medium, and 53 small businesses. Fifty-four of these companies are led by women, and seven are getting ready to export for the first time, the report said.

The program establishes a financial incentive cap of JD150,000 for small businesses, JD300,000 for medium businesses, and JD500,000 for large businesses.

The draft budget for the coming fiscal year will include JD40 million to support this initiative.

Topics: Jordan

Gaza fisherman tests waters in legal fight over Israeli blockade

Gaza fisherman tests waters in legal fight over Israeli blockade

Under Israel’s blockade, Gaza fishermen struggle for a catch

Israel urged to lift blockade on struggling Gaza fishing industry

Anti-Daesh coalition forces targeted in Iraq and Syria: US official

Anti-Daesh coalition forces targeted in Iraq and Syria: US official

Anti-Daesh coalition to set up military base along Turkish-Syrian border

US-led anti-Daesh coalition ends Iraq combat mission: Baghdad

Israeli defense chief resists pressure to halt Gaza offensive, says campaign will ‘take time’

Israeli defense chief resists pressure to halt Gaza offensive, says campaign will ‘take time’

Gazans say hunger is causing social breakdown, fueling fears of exodus into Egypt

Israel bombs southern Gaza as Hamas demands prisoner releases

Antique stoves in Gaza the only way to cook during war

Antique stoves in Gaza the only way to cook during war

HIGHLIGHT

Gazans say hunger is causing social breakdown, fueling fears of exodus into Egypt

Downing of drones in Red Sea ‘legitimate defense’: France

Downing of drones in Red Sea ‘legitimate defense’: France

FASTFACT

Yemen’s Houthi militia threaten Israel-bound Red Sea ships

Houthis vow to continue blocking Red Sea for Israeli ships

Jordanian companies receive over $40m in government grants

Jordanian companies receive over $40m in government grants

Jordan army say three killed in drug bust at Syria border

Jordan says it will host conference to coordinate aid to Gaza

Latest updates

Anti-Daesh coalition forces targeted in Iraq and Syria: US official

Israeli defense chief resists pressure to halt Gaza offensive, says campaign will ‘take time’

Saudi Arabia pledges to continue efforts to promote and protect human rights

AlUla, Italian city in twinning agreement to promote cultural heritage

Antique stoves in Gaza the only way to cook during war

Recommended

Is ‘demilitarization’ of Gaza a euphemism for total destruction?

Israel-Hamas war in Gaza takes heavy toll on Palestinian cultural heritage

Why did Israel fail to foil Hamas attack plot despite specific warnings?

Search form

Print Edition

Search form

Search form

You are here

Gaza fisherman tests waters in legal fight over Israeli blockade

Gaza fisherman tests waters in legal fight over Israeli blockade

Related

Anti-Daesh coalition forces targeted in Iraq and Syria: US official

Related

Israeli defense chief resists pressure to halt Gaza offensive, says campaign will ‘take time’

Related

Antique stoves in Gaza the only way to cook during war

HIGHLIGHT

Related

Downing of drones in Red Sea ‘legitimate defense’: France

FASTFACT

Related

Jordanian companies receive over $40m in government grants

Related

Latest updates

Recommended

Search form

Print Edition