Thursday, September 30, 2010

PCHR weekly report 23/9 - 29/9/2010: 1 fisherman killed by IOF fire

 extracts from PCHR weekly report 23/9 - 29/9/2010:



Friday, 24 September 2010 



In a new crime committed against Palestinian civilians, in the morning, IOF killed a Palestinian fisherman while fishing with his cousins opposite to al-Sudaniya beach in the northern Gaza City.  It should be noted that Israeli gunboats daily chase Palestinian fishermen in the sea and threaten their sources of livelihood through continuously firing at their boats, detaining them and confiscating their fishing tools. 

According to investigations conducted by PCHR and the testimony of a fisherman, who was on the boat, at approximately 09:00 on Friday, 24 September 2010, Mohammed Mansour Bakr, 20, and three of his cousins sailed on a boat belonging to their family opposite to al-Sudaniya beach, north of Gaza City, for fishing. While they were 2,000 meters way from the beach and a similar distance from the naval border, an Israeli gunboat approached at a distance of 100 meters and started heavily firing at the fishing boat without any reason or warning. Mohammed was shot by a bullet to the right side. He fell inside the boat and was bleeding amidst screams of his cousins requesting Israeli soldiers to stop fire, as Mohammed was wounded. However, the Israeli soldiers continued to fire. Approximately 10:00 minutes later, IOF retreated, the Bakrs were able to reach the beach, and transported their cousin to Kamal Nasser Hospital in Beit Lahia, but he passed away.

 

Monday, September 27, 2010

In a New Crime, IOF Kill Palestinian Fisherman in the Gaza Strip

PCHR

Sunday, 26 September 2010 10:30


Ref: 89/2010
In a new crime of those committed against Palestinian civilians, on Friday morning, 24 September 2010, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) killed a Palestinian fisherman while fishing with his cousins opposite to al-Sudaniya beach in the northern Gaza City. It should be noted that Israeli gunboats daily chase Palestinian fishermen in the sea and threaten their sources of livelihood through continuously firing at their boats, detaining them and confiscating their fishing tools.



According to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) and the testimony of a fisherman, who was on the boat, at approximately 09:00 on Friday, 24 September 2010, Mohammed Mansour Bakr, 20, and three of his cousins sailed on a boat belonging to their family opposite to al-Sudaniya beach, north of Gaza City, for fishing. While they were 2,000 meters way from the beach and a similar distance from the naval border, an Israeli gunboat approached at a distance of 100 meters and started heavily firing at the fishing boat without any reason or warning. Mohammed was shot by a bullet to the right side. He fell inside the boat and was bleeding amidst screams of his cousins requesting Israeli soldiers to stop fire, as Mohammed was wounded. However, the Israeli soldiers continued to fire. Approximately 10:00 minutes later, IOF retreated, the Bakrs were able to reach the beach, and transported their cousin to Kamal Nasser Hospital in Beit Lahia, but he passed away.



PCHR condemns this new crime and:



1) Calls upon the international community, particularly the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention 1949, to immediately intervene and exert pressure on IOF to stop all attacks on the Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza Strip, including allowing them to freely sail and fish in the regional waters of the Gaza Strip;

2) Calls for immediate intervention to make IOF stop all forms of grave violations committed against fishermen by its navy, including terrorizing fishermen, firing at them, and confiscating their boats and fishing tools.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Fisherman killed by Israeli fire off Gaza shore

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- The body of a 20-year-old fisherman arrived at a Jabaliya hospital in the Gaza Strip on Friday morning, killed by Israeli gunfire off the northern coast, medics said.

Spokesman for the Kamal Udwan Hospital said the fisherman was identified as Mansour Baker, and that his body was brought to the hospital from the As-Sudanieyah area in northern Gaza.

Adham Abu Selmieyah said Baker had been hit in the chest by gunfire from an Israeli naval ship maintaining the sea blockade on the coastal enclave.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said warships fired warning shots at a fishing boat heading north into Israeli waters, and called on the boat to return to the three-nautical-mile fishing limit.

When the boat failed to return, the spokeswoman said, soldiers fired directly at the vessel. "The boat returned to the permitted area after it was fired on," she said, while a second spokeswoman said the navy had opened an investigation into whether a direct hit had been made on fishermen.


Palestinian fisherman killed by Israeli occupation navy in Gaza
[ 24/09/2010 - 03:33 PM ]


GAZA, (PIC)-- A Palestinian fisherman was shot dead Friday morning by the Israeli occupation navy off the shores of the Shati' refugee camp to the West of Gaza city according to Palestinian medical sources.
Adham Abu Selmeyyah, the medical services media coordinator, said that fisherman Muhammad Mansur Baker, a 20 year old resident of the Shati' refugee camp, died as a result of being shot by Israeli occupation marines on naval boats off the Gaza coast while he was going about his business in the Gaza sea.
Abu Selmeyyah said in a statement that Baker was taken to Kamal Odwan hospital, but he was already dead.
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IOF Gunboats Fire on Palestinian Fishing Boat; Kill Fisherman in North Gaza


24-9-2010


Al Mezan

At app. 9:15am on Friday 24 September 2010, Israeli naval vessels patrolling the Gaza sea opened fire on a Palestinian fishing boat carrying four fishermen from the Bakir family. The shooting occurred opposite the As-Sudaniya area in the North Gaza district. As a result, a fisherman, Mohammed Mansour Omar Bakir, 20, was injured in the chest. His relatives carried him to Kamal Odwan Hospital where he dies soon after arrival. The fishermen are residents of the Al Shati' refugee camp in the west of Gaza City.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

PCHR weekly report 16/9 - 22/9/2010: new attack against Beit Lahia fishermen

extract from PCHR weekly report 16/9 - 22/9/2010

Monday, 20 September 2010


At approximately 06:30, Israeli gunboats stationed opposite to Beit Lahia beach in the northern Gaza Strip opened fire at Palestinian fishing boats. They also fired flash bombs over the area. No casualties were reported.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Israeli Gunboats Fire on Palestinian Fishing Boats on Beit Lahyia Coast

20-9-2010

Al Mezan

At app. 6:20am on Monday 20 September 2010, Israeli naval vessels patrolling the Gaza sea opened fire on Palestinian fishing boats on the coast of Beit Lahyia town in North Gaza District. No casualties or injuries were reported, but the fishermen were terrified and quit their fishing

Saturday, September 18, 2010

WATCH: Gaza fish farms make up for blockade

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Steps away from the Mediterranean, Gaza markets are suffering from a fish shortage.

Unable to repair a destroyed sewage system that seeps into the sea, waters are polluted but fishermen venturing out into deeper, cleaner waters are frequently detained, injured or killed by Israeli ships enforcing a sea blockade.

Some entrepreneurs have started local fish farms to make up for the fish inaccessible by sea. Ibrahim Qannan shows what the farms look like, and the challenges they face.



Filmed for a series of short features broadcast during the holy month of Ramadan, Lina Ibrahim's story aired as part of the program Hay Baladna (This is Our Country), which highlights the challenges and successes of Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza, Jerusalem and cities now in Israel.

The programs are broadcast on the only Palestinian satellite channel in Israel, and can be viewed in homes across the Middle East.

Watch other episodes of This is Our Country

A tour of Jerusalem's ancient Silwan Pool

Gaza's first female truck driver breaks rules

Gaza inventor changes lives

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Building fishing boats in the Gaza Strip

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- Hajj Ashraf Abu Ash-Shanti builds boats, a profession he learned in Israel.

"I was the first to work in this profession in the Gaza Strip at the beginning of the 1980s, when I was working within the Green Line areas. I decided to stay in Gaza and teach the profession to others in my region."

He adds: "After four years of working with boats in the sector, I'm famous [for building them]. All fishermen in the Strip want my boats because they're of stronger quality than those available in Israel."

Ash-Shanti says Israel's siege has driven demand to his products, since they're the only ones available in Gaza, but it has also harmed the industry by limiting the areas in which fishermen are allowed to operate.

But Israel limits the size of boats allowed at sea to seven meters, which stifles Ash-Shanti's ability to produce.

Asked how he makes them, Ash-Shanti said that "in the beginning we used to make boats out of wood ... available in the Gaza Strip. However, this type of wood needs a highly skilled carpenter. We faced difficulty in manufacturing, but now we're able to import wood from abroad. This is much easier and faster for manufacturing boats."