Pertanda bahwa Israel memang serius mau menempuh jalan damai?
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Israel eases some Gaza border restrictions
As part of truce deal, Israel allowing farmers to visit land and fishermen to
head further out to sea, residents say.
Last Modified: 24 Nov 2012 17:35
Gaza residents say that Israel has eased some border restrictions as part of
its ceasefire with the Palestinian territory's Hamas rulers, allowing farmers
to visit land near its security fence and letting fishermen head further out to
sea.
The Egyptian-brokered truce ended eight days of cross-border fighting that
claimed 166 Palestinian and six Israeli lives, according to health officials.
As part of the deal, Israel and Hamas are now to negotiate a further easing of
the Gaza border blockade, first imposed by Israel and Egypt after the Hamas
takeover of Gaza in 2007.
Also on Saturday, tens of thousands of Gaza children returned to school for the
first time since fighting ended late Wednesday. About half of Gaza's 1.6
million people are children.
In 245 UN-run schools, the day was dedicated to letting children share what
they experienced, in hopes of helping them deal with trauma, educators said.
Thirty-four children and minors under the age of 18 were among those killed in
the fighting, according to Gaza health officials and local human rights groups.
Better catch
In another development, fishermen were able on Saturday to sail six nautical
miles, or 6.9km, out to sea, or double the previous limit, Mahfouz Kabariti,
head of the local fishermen's association, said.
He said several fishermen already made the journey on Saturday.
"This is an opportunity and a chance for a better catch, though it is still a
limited area," said Kabariti, who represents about 3,500 fishermen.
Israeli navy boats have been violently enforcing a sea blockade as part of the
isolation of the Gaza Strip.
It has restricted the movement of Gaza's fishermen and farmers in border areas,
citing security concerns.
Gaza children return to school after ceasefire
The restrictions on fishermen have fluctuated over the years, linked to the ups
and downs in Israeli-Palestinian relations.
The terms of the 1993 Oslo agreement stipulated for a fishing zone of 20
nautical miles from Gaza's shore.
Some Gaza residents said they were able to enter an Israeli-enforced buffer
zone on the Gaza side of the border on Saturday with Israel without being fired
upon.
Israel's military carved out a 300-metre-wide zone for several years, saying it
was to prevent Palestinians from sneaking into Israel.
The zone occupied scarce acres of farmland in one of the most densely populated
areas in the world.
On Friday, hundreds of Palestinians surged toward the border fence, but Israeli
soldiers fired to push them back, killing one man and wounding at least 19
people.
Nidal Abu Dakka, 42-year-old farmer, said on Saturday that soldiers stood and
watched as he and others moved close to the fence.
Abu Dakka, speaking by phone, said he was inspecting his land, about 60 metres
from the border, and planned to plant wheat and barley soon. In other border
areas, residents said Hamas police kept them away from the fence.
An Israeli government spokesman said he was unaware restrictions had been
eased. A defence official said the Israeli military was no longer enforcing the
no-go zone, but reserved the right to act against suspicious people.
Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to discuss
the issue with reporters.
Israeli demands
Israeli demands that Hamas halt weapons smuggling into Gaza, while Hamas seeks
free movement for people and goods in and out of Gaza.
After the Hamas takeover in 2007, Israel and then-Egyptian President Hosni
Mubarak sealed Gaza to isolate Hamas and make it harder for them to govern.
The restrictions have since been eased because of international pressure on
Israel and because of regime change in Egypt.
Follow the latest developments in the ongoing conflict
Before the November 14 start of the fighting, Gaza received most of its
consumer goods through an Israeli cargo crossing, while Israel banned virtually
all exports and travel from Gaza, preventing the area's battered economy from
bouncing back.
A total of 156 Palestinians were killed during the latest Gaza fighting and 10
died later of their wounds, they said.
The exchanges of fire were the bloodiest between Israel and Hamas in four years.
Israel said it launched the offensive to put an end to Gaza rocket fire on
Israeli towns and that it reached its objectives.
Hamas claimed victory because Israel did not make good on threats to send
ground troops into the territory, as it had done four years earlier.
Israel's air force carried out up to 1,500 raids on Hamas-linked targets, while
Gaza fighters fired roughly the same number of rockets, including some
targeting the cities of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem for the first time.
Source:
Al Jazeera And Agencies
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