The Israeli navy on Tuesday detained nine fishermen off the coast of Gaza and took them to an unknown location, the Palestinian news agency WAFA has reported, as Israel has been stepping up its attacks and restrictions on Gaza’s fishermen.
The WAFA report said that the fishermen were abducted while they were working off the shores of Gaza City and Deir el-Balah, central Gaza. The incident occurred just two days after Israeli naval fire killed one fisherman off the coast of central Gaza, and Israeli forces detained four others.
The fisherman killed on Sunday was identified as Mohammed Abu Jayyab, and some sources put his age at 16, while others said he was 18. Zakaria Bakr, coordinator of Gaza’s fishermen’s committees, told China’s Xinhua news agency that Abu Jayyab “was killed by Israeli gunfire while trying to fish to provide for his family.”
In May, there were several instances of Palestinian fishermen being wounded by Israeli fire off the coast of Gaza. WAFA said that the increased pressure on Gaza’s fishermen has included “detention, live fire, and the confiscation of boats and fishing equipment.”
Israeli attacks continued on land in Gaza, with the Health Ministry reporting on Tuesday that it recorded the IDF killing seven Palestinians and wounding 34 over the previous 24-hour period, as the IDF continues its constant violations of the US-backed Gaza ceasefire deal.
The ministry said that since the deal was signed in early October, the Israeli military has killed at least 978 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 3,097. “A number of victims are still under the rubble and in the streets, as ambulance and civil defense crews have been unable to reach them so far,” the ministry wrote on Telegram.
