Israeli security forces fired at Gazan fishermen and poured sewer water to stop them from fishing off the Gaza coast on Friday, September 8. This is the latest such incident of harassment that the people of Gaza have been facing since the blockade of the Kerem Shalom border crossing on Tuesday.
The densely-populated Gaza strip has been under a total blockade imposed by Israel since 2006. The closing of the Kerem Shalom crossing is likely to have an adverse impact on the livelihood of Palestinians in Gaza and its economy since it was the last remaining crossing from where transport of goods in and out of the territory was allowed.
Though no casualties were reported from the Israeli fire on Friday, the incident intensifies the economic concerns of the around 4,000 fishermen in the besieged territory who are suffering due to the recent shutting of the border crossing with Israel. Palestinian fishermen are among the worst affected from the border closure as their product is perishable. They, along with rights groups, have called the border closure a form of “collective punishment” for the around 2.3 million Gazans living in the territory.
On Tuesday, the Israeli defense ministry and the military claimed in a joint statement that the decision to close the crossing was taken after an alleged attempt to smuggle explosives in one of the shipments. The Israeli authorities, however, failed to present any evidence to substantiate their claim.
Palestinian fishermen are often targeted and fired upon and chased out of the sea by the Israeli coast guards for allegedly violating fishing zones, which are often arbitrarily demarcated by Israeli authorities.
The fishermen’s union claimed that the closure has led to the destruction of over 26 tons of fish and a loss of over USD 300,000, which is significant given the state of Gaza’s economy under the blockade.
Due to the blockade, the economy of Gaza has severely contracted and poverty has increased. Nearly 61% of Gazans today live in poverty and over 53% are facing food insecurity. Basic amenities and social services including health have continued to decline. A drop of over 40% has been estimated in Gaza’s annual medical supplies, despite the fact that periodic Israeli airstrikes and bombings every few months since 2006 have left thousands injured and hundreds dead.
Israel has ignored calls by rights groups and the UN to stop the harassment of Gazan fishermen and allow them to fish and export their products.
