Ref: 69/2011 

On
Wednesday morning, 20 July 2011, the Israeli Navy attacked Palestinian fishing
boats and the Oliva Boat, which monitors the situation at Gaza seashore.

According
to investigations conducted by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR)
and testimony of Hussein al-‘Amoudi, 20, who was accompanying the Oliva crew,
Olivastarted sailingat 7:45 in the morning as part of its mission to monitor
the situation at Gaza seashore. The international activists Joe Catron,
Alexandra Robinson and captain Salah ‘Ammar were on board. Around 9:30, while
they were approximately two nautical miles offGaza coast, two Israeli gunboats
approached the boat from a distance of approximately five meters and attacked
it using water hoses. One of the
gunboats hit Oliva, causing damages to it. Due to the massive use of water
hoses from the Israeli gunboats, Olivia was filled with water and its propeller
was damaged. Al-‘Amoudireported that the
Israeli Navy was communicating with the Boat’s crew through loudspeakers intimating
them to stop and to obey to their orders. The damaged Oliva Boat was pulled by
a number of Palestinian fishermen boatsto the Gaza port, while the Boat’s crew
was taken to shore on board of another Palestinian boat.

It is
worth noting that Oliva started its work on 20 April 2011 under the umbrella of
the Spanish Civil Peace Service. It carried out the first monitoring mission in
the Gaza Strip on 8 June 2011. This project is aimed at monitoring and
documenting Israeli attacks against Palestinian fishermen while fishing, which
constitute a violation of international law and amount to possible war crimes.
PCHR, Fishing and Naval Sports Association, Union of Agricultural Work
Committees and the Coordination Committee of Popular Resistance participate in
the project, which is sponsored by dozens of local and international
organizations. The monitoring team includes international solidarity activists
from Italy, Sweden, USA and the UK.

Oliva
was attacked twice last week in an attempt from IOF to terrorize the
international observers and prevent them from monitoring human rights situation
at Gaza seashore and from observing the Israeli violations perpetrated against
the Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza’s waters.[1]

PCHR
condemns the continuous attacks by the Israeli Navy against Palestinian fishing
boats, and the attack against Oliva, which monitors the human rights situation
in Gaza’s seawater. PCHR calls upon the international community, and in
particular the UN bodies:

1- To intervene to stop Israeli violations of international
humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, including
measures aimed at preventing the work of Palestinian fishermen.

2- To act to stop the Israeli Navy’s attacks against Oliva Boat,
which carries out a peaceful civil mission and aims– with absolutely legal
tools – to ensure the Palestinian fishermen the possibility of workingin safe
conditions.

3- To force Israel to immediately lift the illegal siege imposed
on the Gaza Strip, including themarine blockade, and allow Palestinian
fishermen to work freely.