The head of Gaza’s fishermen’s union says three men have died after their boat was hit by ‘missiles’ off Khan Younis.
Three Palestinian fishermen have been killed in an explosion off the coast of Gaza, local media and the head of a Gaza fishermen syndicate said.
The official WAFA news agency said sources said the three men had died on Sunday as a result of a “secret explosion”.
Nizar Ayyash, head of the Gaza fishermen’s union, told the QNN news website that the three men, all members of the same family, had died after their boat was hit by “missiles” off Khan Younis.
Ayyash said it is not yet known where the project came from.
The interior ministry said in a statement that they were investigating the incident.
👤 تصريح صحفي:
⭕️ تُحقق وزارة الداخلية والأمن الوطني في حادثة استشهاد ثلاثة صيادين على إثر انفجار بمركبهم قبالة باليب
ياد البزم
المتحدث باسم وزارة الداخلية والأمن الوطني
الأحد 7 مارس 2021 pic.twitter.com/JeXj7ziuqR– وزارة الداخلية الفلسطينية (@moigovps) March 7, 2021
Translation: The Ministry of Interior and National Security is investigating the deaths of three fishermen following an explosion in their boat off the coast of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Sunday morning.
The Israeli military has denied responsibility for what happened.
“The [Israeli military] they are not responsible for what happened, and our indications are that the death was caused by an explosion inside Gaza, “he said in a statement.
WAFA news agency said the Israeli navy earlier on Sunday had opened fire at Palestinian fishermen sailing off the city of Gaza, forcing the ship to return to land.
Israel has blocked the Gaza Strip since 2007. It imposes strict restrictions on the work of fishermen off the coast of the Gaza Ocean, citing security reasons.
There are about 3,000 fishermen in Gaza, and only 800 of them work on about 700 boats. Some 70,000 Palestinians in Gaza make a living directly or indirectly from fishing, according to official Palestinian statistics.