Tag: Gaza

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.

ISM Gaza: Gazan fisherman injured during Israeli water cannon attack

On Friday 31st October, 2008, seven trawling vessels from the port of Gaza City were accompanied by ten international human rights observers. Activists from the International Solidarity Movement were joined by volunteers from the Free Gaza Movement who reached Gaza on October 29th on the MV Dignity. The fishing fleet left port at about 07:30.

By about 10:00 the fleet had scattered slightly and a couple of Israeli naval gunboats were on the scene, followed by a naval ship bearing a high-pressure water cannon on its bow. Two fishing vessels, approximately ten nautical miles offshore, endured a drawn-out onslaught from the water cannon. Throughout the morning different fishing boats were harassed by a number of Israeli naval vessels.

One of the fishing boats suffered particularly brutal attacks both in the morning and then later in the afternoon. From 11:00 to 11:50 it was attacked by an Israeli naval gunboat marked ‘832’ which fired machine guns in its general direction as well as shells from a cannon mounted on its foredeck. At one point, rounds of live ammunition were fired just a metre away from fishermen and an ISM activist onboard, seriously endangering their lives. They were at the stern of the vessel as the fishermen worked to raise their net and the navy was shooting at the net as it was being hauled in. The fishermen were experiencing some difficulties due to damage caused to their equipment. The navy was contacted via VHF radio but no reply was received. At 12:30, gunboat ‘832’ reappeared and began to threaten the trawler with intermittent gunfire, lasting until 12:45.

At 14:45 the same fishing boat headed out to approximately nine nautical miles offshore and was approached by a different naval gunboat – this time marked ‘907’ – which opened fire in a similar fashion to gunboat ‘832’. It was then joined by the naval ship armed with the water cannon. The navy proceeded to use this weapon against the fishing vessel and the persons onboard in a sustained attack.

A Palestinian fisherman was injured by flying glass when the high-pressure water smashed all the windows in the wheelhouse, despite them having been boarded up. He suffered a deep laceration on his right arm and was bleeding profusely. The fishermen signalled to gunboat ‘907’ that they had an injured person onboard, but the navy continued its assault regardless. The ISM activist on-board received blows from the water jet to the right-hand side of her body, particularly her head, neck and shoulder. It was not possible to communicate with the navy via VHF radio, as the set onboard the fishing vessel had become waterlogged and was no longer functioning.

One of the trawlers accompanied by both an ISM activist and a Free Gaza Movement volunteer was also severely attacked. According to David Schermerhorn of the FGM,

“Three naval vessels attacked us with machine gun fire and water cannons. All three boats have machine guns on board, one of them has a huge water cannon. The water from the cannon was so fierce, it blasted a lot of the equipment overboard as well as my GPS locator. At the time of the attack, we were about 9 miles offshore fishing. Several of us got on the radio to the Israeli navy and shouted, “We are human rights watchers. We are unarmed internationals, and we are recording everything you are doing. They completely ignored us and continued menacing all of the boats.”

These incidents constitute a serious breach of the current ceasefire agreement, not to mention a violation of international human rights law.

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.

ISM Gaza reports from the Olive Harvest Campaign 2008 in the ‘buffer zone’

This is a compilation of reports of Olive Harvest in Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya, 11th, 13th, 16th & 30th October. Video by Fida Qishta.

ISM Gaza Strip volunteers living in the Gaza Strip have been assisting farmers living in the Buffer Zone areas of Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya with their olive harvest during the month of October. In 2005, Israeli Occupation forces declared a 500 meter wide area, deep into the rich agricultural land of Gaza Strip, as a “Buffer Zone”. The entire Eastern border of Gaza Strip has become a desert in the past few years, while once it fed and sustained the 1.5 million residents, most of it is now empty fields of dirt, with maybe a lone tree, reminding all that the land was once full of olive, clementines, lemon, orange, date and many other trees and crops.

The morning starts off with lots of vibrant singing of Palestinian folk songs and as the day progresses, there is less singing and more chatting back and forth between the olive harvesters. There is always a strong spirit and of course the very welcoming tradition of offering Arabic coffee and tea throughout the day. If the harvest lasts through the lunch time, food is prepared and brought to the field, plastic is spread out on the ground and everyone sits as delicious Palestinian food is served.

Presently it is still dangerous for the Palestinian farmers to go to their land, even just to stand there, the Israeli occupation force soldiers are still based at the borders and they still shoot at farmers seen in the fields. The idea of planting crops to harvest is a dream for the future to many farmers. Yet some farmers have succeeded to replant their olive trees for the third or forth time, and a few very fortunate farmers still have their older olive trees to harvest. It is these farmers the ISM Gaza Strip volunteers have been harvesting olives with, those farmers who have been steadfast in nonviolently resisting the Israeli Occupation and the Siege by continuing to farm under the imminent threat of having all their crops and irrigation systems destroyed yet again.

Some of the groves have been small, maybe half a dozen or so trees and the trees have been young, just a few years old – replanted for the third or forth time. Two groves have been large, with the lucky older trees that have somehow succeeded to survive the death blows of the Israeli bulldozers and tanks and Israeli occupation force soldiers. Three times the ISM volunteers have traveled from Gaza City to Beit Hanoun (11th, 13th, & 30th) and once to Beit Lahiya (16th October), to join the Local Initiative Group to pick the olives, a vital and locally produced food source for the Palestinian people. Olives, olive oil and olive oil soap are traditions of Palestinian livelihood that go back decades. If the Israeli soldiers are not prevented from continuing the destruction of the olive trees, this tradition could be gone forever.