Israelis spy on Gaza fishermen

GAZA: Anyone venturing far from Gaza's shore risks not only gunfire but also blackmail as Israeli warships trawl the besieged Palestinian territory's waters for informers, fishermen say.

The Al-Mezan human rights group says it has documented the arrests at sea of hundreds of fishermen who faced pressure to work for Israeli authorities. Local fishermen gave similar accounts to AFP.

Ramadan al-Sultan, who has been fishing the Mediterranean waters off Gaza for 20 years, says he was seized last year and taken to Israel, where an officer tried to recruit him as a spy.

"First he offered me money and told me I'm an OK guy, that I have no problems with Israel, no ties with Hamas or other terrorist groups.

"Then he threatened me and said I would be banned from fishing if I didn't collaborate, but I refused," he says, sitting on the shore in northern Gaza with other fishermen.

An Israeli military spokesman declined to comment on the allegations, saying only that the navy is responsible for maintaining a blockade of the territory and that it acts "in accordance with international rules."

On Monday Israeli sailors fired at fishing boats off Gaza, causing one to burst into flames. There were no casualties, and a military spokeswoman said the boats had ignored warning shots and orders to turn back.

Israeli officials rarely speak about the network of Palestinian informants, believed to number in the thousands, to help security forces break up cells, foil attacks and kill senior fighters.

The subject is also a sensitive one for Palestinians. Since the outbreak of the latest uprising in 2000 militants have executed scores of suspected informants, whom they view as collaborators guilty of treason.

The fishermen said Israel is after information about the Islamist Hamas movement - which seized power in Gaza in June 2007 - and other militant factions that have carried out attacks on the Jewish state.

GAZA CITY, Wednesday, AFP