Photos: Palestinian fishermen struggle to feed their families on Gaza City’s shores

Editor’s note: This is the latest photo essay by Rizek Abdel Jawad, a photojournalist from Gaza City whose work has previously been featured in these pages, documenting life in the shadow of Israel’s genocidal assault on the besieged territory. 

Images show Palestinian fishermen on their rudimentary boats on the Gaza City shore, trying to catch a small amount of fish to support their families amidst the catastrophic humanitarian situation.

Israel has prevented Palestinian fishermen from accessing the Mediterranean Sea for more than two years, since the start of its assault on Gaza, meaning they can only fish in less plentiful inshore waters.

Israeli forces are known to open fire on fishermen as they enter the water and to arrest them at sea. During the war, Israel destroyed all large motorized fishing boats within Gaza’s waters, depriving more than 6,000 fisherman and their families of their livelihood.

Rizek Abdel Jawad is a photojournalist based in Gaza City. To see more of his work, follow him on Instagram and Facebook. He is part of the Connecting Gaza initiative, which helps families in Gaza survive. You can support them by going to www.connectinggaza.org/donate.