Israel gives Gaza more room to fish
Boats permitted to trawl up to six nautical miles from land, ending previous limitations imposed after rocket fire
Palestinian fishermen set off to sea from the port in Gaza City on December 17, 2010 (photo credit:MOHAMMED OTHMAN/Flash 90)
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon on Tuesday doubled the area of sea available to Palestinian fisherman from Gaza, who can now ply the waters up to six nautical miles from the shore.
The six-mile limit was agreed on between Israel and Gaza at the end of the September 2012 Operation Pillar of Defense, which aimed to stop rocket fire from Gaza at Israel. However, two months ago the IDF restricted Gaza fishermen to a three-mile limit after repeated rocket attacks on Israel from the Gaza Strip. That limitation was reversed on Tuesday.
Israel maintains a sea blockade on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip as part of its efforts to prevent the import of weapons into the coastal enclave.
read more: