Palestinian fisherman Fathi Sa'edi every night sets sail under the cover of night off Gaza shore, not to catch fish, but to buy them from Egyptian fishermen and then sell in Gaza.

"The sea is no longer our livelihood," he said, putting down boxes of fish he bought in Egyptian waters. "It's a risky job but we have to do to survive."

Israel allows the 3,500 fishermen in Gaza only limited access to the water and the fishing area is restricted from 20 miles to 3 miles (about 32 km to 4.8 km) along the 40 km coast which is, according to fishermen, not enough to reach fish.

"The Israelis made it impossible for us to catch fish. I have kids who need food and education, this is why I risk my life," said the 36-year-old fisherman, who sold his wife's jewelry and received a loan from a local NGO to buy two small speedy boats specially for this business.

"Each boat is worth US$5,000. These boats are light and fast and really necessary for this business," he said as he refueled one of them after a perilous journey in the Egyptian waters.

The 80-km trip to the Egyptian city of al-Arish starts at deep night. Fishermen have to make it into the Egyptian waters to buy fish and sail back to Gaza's only pier before the crack of dawn.

The process of buying fish from Egyptian fishermen is unorganized but easy, according to Gaza fishermen.

"When we are inside the Egyptian waters, we directly approach the big boats which were waiting for us to sell their fish," said Sa'edi, preparing his breakfast, canned sardines, which he used to fish in plenty before things get worse.

Sa'edi said the net profit of each trip is 500 shekels (about US$134). "We buy the fish at good prices and sell them in Gaza markets at higher prices," said Sa'edi, a father of five children, who used to earn more than 10,000 shekels every month before Israel tightens siege on Gaza ground and sea borders.

Israel imposed tight siege on the coastal enclave after the Islamic Hamas movement, which calls of the destruction of Israel, assumed power after forcibly defeating its secular rival Fatah movement.

According to his estimates, at least 50 boats approach the Egyptian city of al-Arish on a daily basis to buy fish and sell them in Gaza markets.

"If things continue to be like this, fishermen will no longer be fishermen because buying fish from Egypt and selling them in Gaza is easier than fishing in our empty and Israeli-controlled sea," said Sa'edi.

Sa'edi revealed that he is more afraid of the Egyptians than the Israeli gunboats as he heard in the news that Egypt is going to build a barrier between the Egypt-Gaza waters.

"We heard the news of building this new siege in the sea to bar us from reaching the Egyptian waters," he said. "The Egyptians are building a similar underground barrier to block the smuggling tunnels, so it's possible they might build one in the sea."

According to the Palestinian fishing syndicate, the Israeli restrictions and harassment on Palestinian fishermen have negatively affected their livelihood and the future of a better fishing system in Gaza.

"The Israeli restrictions have significantly reduced the amount and variety of fish our fishermen catch," said Nizar Ayyash of the Palestinian Fishermen Syndicate.

"The catch is nothing compared to the years before the second Intifada (which began) in 2000," said Ayyash, who himself is a fisherman. "Things are getting even worse."

"Is not it sarcastic that a fisherman buys fish from another fisherman?" he questioned, ironically smiling, "this of course will destroy the industry, but fishermen have to survive."

Ayyash also said the Israeli restrictions cost the fishing sector millions of dollars in fishing equipment destroyed by Israeli naval forces, in addition to millions more which would be lost from fish sales.

For Sa'edi and others, fishing off the Gaza sea is too much better than buying fish from Egyptian counterparts. But conditions are not helping nor promising.

"If they (the Israelis) open the sea, we will never seek to buy fish from Egyptian seamen," said a Palestinian fisherman who refused to give his name. "Our fish is better especially after long years of restrictive policies which make the fish increase in number and quality." (US$1 = 3.74 shekels)

(Xinhua News Agency February 4, 2010)