Khalid Abu Riyad News

Israel-Palestinian Sea Feud Harms Gaza Fishermen

After hours casting their nets close to the Gaza shore, Palestinian fishermen sift through their catch in the dim dawn light, managing to scrape together a few piles of puny fish. It's a miserable catch, the result, they say, of restrictions imposed by Israel, with boats allowed only three nautical miles (5.6 km) offshore after a month of no fishing at all during the recent fighting. For years Gaza's fishing community - once one of its proudest and most productive industries - has been caught in the middle of a maritime feud, part of a wider conflict between the blockaded Palestinian enclave and Israel. As Palestinian and Israeli negotiators meet independently with Egyptian officials to try to reach an agreement to end the latest conflict that began on July 8…