Gaza fishermen at work off the coast of the Gaza Strip on April 3, 2016. (AFP/Mahmud Hams)
Israeli officials have announced they will temporarily expand the fishing area for Palestinians off a sector of the blockaded Gaza Strip.
From Wednesday, fishermen in southern Gaza will be able to travel up to nine nautical miles out to sea in search of hauls, up from six previously, an Israeli statement said Sunday.
The six-week expansion will “improve the economy in the Gaza Strip,” said the statement from the Israeli Defense Ministry unit COGAT.
Fishing limits off the northern part of Gaza will remain unchanged at six miles.
The size of the fishing zone has varied over the years, having been set at 20 nautical miles by the Oslo Accords of the 1990s before being reduced by Israeli authorities.
Israel and Palestinian terrorists in Hamas-run Gaza have fought three wars since 2008 and the Strip has been under an Israeli blockade for 10 years to keep Hamas from importing weapons or materials used to make them.
From left in front row, Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip Yahya Sinwar, Head of Palestinian General Intelligence Majid Faraj, Head of the Hamas political bureau Ismail Haniyeh, PA Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and an Egyptian mediator hold their hands up during a meeting in Gaza City, October 2, 2017. (AP Photo/Prime Minister Office, File)
Nizar Ayesh, head of the Palestinian fishing union, told AFP it has not yet been informed of the latest decision. He said he hoped the recent reconciliation between Palestinian factions would pressure Israel to further loosen its restrictions.
Advertisement
Around 4,000 fishermen work in Gaza, more than half of whom live below the poverty line.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
