Category: Press Releases

FGM: “The people of Gaza have plenty of food. They don’t need to go fishing”

To view the Free Gaza Movement website click here

Larnaca. When members of the Free Gaza Movement sailed to Gaza in August, several accompanied fishermen aboard their small boats. Israeli gunboats regularly confine these boats inside a 6-mile Israeli-imposed limit. Although international law allows every Mediterranean sea territory fishing rights 12-20 miles offshore, Israel ignores those laws and has killed at least 14 fishermen over the past few years.

“All we ever wanted to do was fish,” said one as he fixed his nets. “We can’t feed our families or make money doing what our ancestors have done for thousands of years.”

Over the next two months, internationals reported and video taped several incidents of machine-gun fire and water-cannon attacks. Around 8:00 am, on October 31, ten internationals joined the fishermen as witnesses. By 8:30, the two lead boats had passed the Israeli limit. “The second boat was about 100 yards away from us when it was attacked for 30 minutes by a high-pressure water cannon from an Israeli warship. The spray was so powerful you couldn’t even see the boat,” said David Schermerhorn.

Throughout the day, as the men continued to fish, boats were hit so severely by high-pressure water cannon that only makeshift shutters and mattresses prevented the wheelhouses from flooding and windows from exploding onto the men. Within minutes, the Israeli water-cannon boat was joined by another gunboat, machine gun mounted in back. The gunner blasted multiple rounds within a meter of the fishing boat. Despite continued machine-gun fire, water cannons and three Israeli gunboats circling like sharks, the fishermen stayed out 10-11 miles for a catch.

When Angela Godfrey-Goldstein called Shlomo Dror, Israeli Ministry of Defense spokesman, to tell the Navy to stop machine gunning barely a meter over the heads of fishermen and internationals, he accused the rights advocates of being provocateurs, terrorists, supporters of Hamas. “The people of Gaza have plenty of food. They don’t need to go fishing,” he snarled.

“When the Ministry of Defense learns that this voyage brings a delegation of European parliamentarians, maybe he will begin to “get it.” Average citizens of the world, even decision makers, are up in arms, non-violently, against the collective punishment, the state terrorism of the Israeli government. And we are restoring dignity to those abandoned human beings, just as we would have wanted to do in the past to others in other ghettoes” said Godfrey-Goldstein.

“I had only heard about these episodes before I came to Gaza. I can’t begin to tell you the horror these men face every day by bullies in the Israeli Navy,” added an outraged Schermerhorn. “What risks they take we don’t even know about. The good news was the fishermen were ecstatic when they pulled up the nets. It was one of the largest catches they had had in years.”

FGM: Free Gaza Movement to set sail

To view the Free Gaza Movement website click here

Larnaca: Tomorrow at 5:00 pm, the DIGNITY leaves for the third time for the shores of Gaza. This time, eleven past and current members of parliaments of Europe are on board, with Al Jazeera International and The Independent journalists.

These dignitaries were among the 53 Parliamentarians denied entrance by Egypt at the Rafah checkpoint. “Egypt did not allow us to enter Gaza via the Rafah terminal, but this will not stop us from visiting the area,” Lord Nazir Ahmad, head of the European delegates stated, “We will sail to Gaza, we are determined to break the siege”.

Ms Clare Short MP emphasized, “The Egyptian refusal to grant us access through Rafah Crossing is insulting to all of us, and Egypt should open the crossing now.”

They will be on a three-day fact finding tour organized by the Free Gaza Movement and the European Campaign to End the Siege as well as several of the organizations in Gaza who have worked with the Free Gaza Movement on the past two voyages.

On the past trips, Israel has threatened to stop the DIGNITY, arrest its passengers and tow the boat to Israel. The government has been silent on its plans this time, perhaps out of respect for the dignitaries on the voyage. Members of the two organizations stress that the DIGNITY has no intention of going anywhere near Israeli waters but will enter Gaza through its own coastal waters.

The port authorities have asked media to come between 3:30 pm and 5:00 pm Friday at Larnaca Port to see the boat leave and to conduct interviews.

The passenger list (see below) and biographies are posted at Free Gaza’s website, www.freegaza.org. Photos are freely downloadable here

Ahmed, Nazir (Lord) (Pakistan/UK), Andrews, Christopher (Ireland), Bartlett, Eva (Canada), Bolos, Nikolas (Ireland), Healey, Denis (UK), Elhag, Sami Moheildin Mohamed (Sudan), Graham, Derek (Ireland), McNeill, Pauline (Scotland), Morena, Fernando (Spain), Nacer, Mohamed (UK), O’Donnell, Hugh (Scotland, UK), ÓSnodaigh, Aengus (Ireland), Rossi, Fernando (Italy), Arraf, Huwaida (US), Sharp, Rob (UK), Schermerhorn, David (USA), Shoukri, Dr. Arafat (Palestine, UK), Short, Clare (UK), Thomas, Rhodri Glyn (Wales, UK), Tonge, Dr. Jenny (Baroness) (UK), White, Sandra (Scotland, UK), Zisyadis, Josef (Switzerland)

FGM: Free Gaza returns the Dignity on Friday Nov. 7 with 13 MPs

To view the Free Gaza Movement website click here

On Friday, November 7, the DIGNITY leaves at 5:00 pm from Larnaca to Gaza. This time, thirteen European Parliamentarians (from England, Ireland, Italy, Turkey, Wales, Switzerland, and Scotland) are on board.

After two successful voyages, one in August and one last week, members of the Free Gaza Movement are pleased to bring yet another delegation to Gaza to see for themselves the devastation Israel has meted out to 1.5 million Palestinians.

“Our dream two years ago was to bring people to Gaza to witness what Israel is doing. This time, we are honored to have Parliamentarians from the world community coming with us,” said Mary Hughes-Thompson, one of the original Free Gaza Movement organizers.

The Free Gaza Movement and the European Campaign to End the Siege have organized this voyage as Egypt refused to allow entry to 53 international Parliamentarians who were holding a conference in Gaza on November 8–11. Now, several of them are going to meet with their counterparts and assess the humanitarian situation there.

“Egypt did not allow us to enter Gaza via the Rafah terminal, but this will not stop us from visiting the area,” Lord Nazir Ahmad, head of the European delegation stated. “We will sail to Gaza, we are determined to break the siege.” UK MP Ms Clare Short emphasized, “The Egyptian refusal to grant us access through Rafah Crossing is insulting to all of us, and Egypt should open the crossing now.”

The parliamentarians will visit hospitals and deliver a ton of medical supplies brought by the DIGNITY. Hopefully they will be able to meet with many of the 700 students who have been denied the right to leave Gaza and study at universities that have already admitted them.

Dr. Arafat Shoukri of the European Campaign to End the Siege added, “We intend to deliver the medical supplies to the most vulnerable of the stricken population in the territory”.

“This journey will send a strong message to the world and is a direct challenge to the Israeli siege on Gaza. We hope this trip of Parliamentarians will be one of many to follow,” said Osama Qashoo, another Free Gaza Movement organizer.

Israeli navy spray chemical substance at Gazan fishermen

The Israeli navy continuously attacked Palestinian fishing boats in Gaza throughout yesterday (4th November), using live ammunition and a high-powered water cannon containing a noxious chemical substance.

International Human Rights Observers (HROs) accompanying several fishing boats off the coast of Gaza approximately 8 nautical miles from shore reported that the Israeli navy constantly shot live ammunition extremely close to the boats, damaging many of the fishing nets in the process.

The international HROs also reported the use of a high-powered water cannon that was continuously used against the boats. Not only does this water cannon regularly damages the fishing boats themselves, the HROs have reported that recently the water has contained a foul smelling chemical substance. It is assumed that this substance is the same that has been frequently used by Israeli forces against the non- violent protests against the construction of the annexation barrier in the West Bank villages of Bil’in and Ni’lin. The substance have however been taken for separate chemical analysis.

With the boats fishing 8 nautical miles from shore, this is well within the fishing limit detailed in the Oslo Accords of 1994. With regular claims that from the Israeli government that it has ‘disengaged’ from Gaza, these patrols and attacks from the Israeli navy, regularly occuring from as little as 3 miles from shore, represent a clear signal of the continuation of occupation of Gazan territory as well as regular breaches of the current cease-fire.

The use of chemical substances by the Israeli navy on Gazan fishermen outside of internationally recognised Israeli territorial waters, such as that occurred today, also directly contradicts the Chemical Weapons Convention that took force in 1997 and that is ratified by 149 countries. Within the convention it is detailed that “Each state party undertakes not to use riot control agents as a method of warfare.”

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), while citing the Chemical Weapons Convention, has made repeated statements on the use of chemical weapons, whether deemed ‘lethal’ or ‘non-lethal’, notably, “It should be emphasized that in situations of armed conflict this absolute prohibition applies to all biological and chemical agents, whether labeled “lethal” or “non-lethal”

Israel cannot claim that it has ‘disengaged’ from the Gaza Strip and not be in clear and direct contravention of these statements.

The violent attacks on Gazan fishermen by the Israeli navy appears to have escalated in recent weeks. International HROs have reported that
live ammunition is being fired continuously closer to the boats, while the damage to fishing boats has also increased.

On the 5th of October Mohammed Musleh was severely injured while fishing off the the coast of the Gaza Strip. He was shot with a 50mm bullet in the leg. He was recently transferred to Jerusalem, after much delay at the Erez, crossing in efforts to save his leg.

Over 40,000 people in Gaza make a living from the fishing industry, yet this community has been decimated by Israeli restrictions on fishing rights and the prevention of fuel from reaching the Gaza Strip.

According to the Fishing Syndicate in Gaza, fishermen need 40,000 litres of fuel and 40,000 litres of natural gas each day to operate throughout the high fishing season.

Starting in April each year, there is a migration of fish from the Nile Delta to Turkish waters which Palestinian fishermen have traditionally relied upon. Yet Israel limits fishing 6 miles from the Gaza shore and regularly attacks those who venture further than 3 miles – over 70 fishermen were arrested last year by the Israeli forces. The large schools that form the migration are usually found 10 miles from shore. The average catch of fish was over 3000 tons a year in the 1990’s, now it is around 500 tons directly due to the Israeli siege of Gaza.

Not only this, but the brutal effects of the siege, the water in which the fishermen of Gaza sail in is now receiving 50 million litres of sewage per day because the people of Gaza have no alternative.

Five people injured as Ni’lin maintains its resistance to the construction of the apartheid wall

November 2, 2008

On the 2nd November, a demonstration against the Apartheid Wall began in Ni’lin at 1.30 in the afternoon. 50 Palestinians gathered with 6 internationals by the municipality and marched towards the construction site in hopes of intervening with the construction work on the wall.

When the demonstrators were stopped by the presence of the Israeli army, they began to chant against the occupation and the wall. Within 5 minutes, the soldiers began to shoot tear gas canisters directly at the crowd. One person was hit by the tear gas canister because the widespread Israeli tactic of shooting directly at rather than above the demonstrators.

The protesters withdrew into the olive groves and the soldiers began to shoot rubber-coated steel bullets in addition to the gas. The soldiers fired rubber-coated steel bullets aiming at the demonstrators from a very close distance.

Until 17.30, the people of Ni’lin displayed their strong resistance to the construction of an illegal wall which if built will annex much of their land. A total of 5 people were injured: 2 were with tear gas canisters and 3 were shot with rubber-coated steel bullets. Ni’lin will continue their actions against the Apartheid Wall during the week and will hold their weekly prayer demonstration this Friday.