LOC11:40
08:40 GMT
GAZA, July 24 (KUNA) -- Israeli gunboats targeted a fishing boat in the sea of the Gaza Strip on Sunday, destroying it, however, no injuries were reported.
Nizar Ayyash, chairman of the fishermen union, said in a press statement that the Israeli boats fired their heavy machine guns at one of the fishing boats off the coast of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, which led to the boat setting ablaze.
No injuries were recorded after the fishermen who were on board jumped from the boat during the shooting and managed to escape by swimming, he said.
Meanwhile, the Israeli occupation army claimed in a press statement that the targeting of the boat came to thwart the navy's attempt to smuggle unspecified supplies at night at the Egyptian border.
On a daily basis, the Israeli navy targets Palestinian fishermen, claiming that they have crossed the distance allowed by the Israeli occupation army, set from six to 12 nautical miles.
The Palestinian fishermen were also subjected to many other daily harassments by the Israeli navy, including arrests, water spraying, sinking boats, and damage to them by shooting. (end)
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