Palestinian Workers Union Demands Egypt to Release Detained Fishermen

Palestinian fishermen doing activities in Gaza waters on May 3, 2017. (Mustafa Hassona - Anadolu Agency)

Gaza, MINA – The Palestinian Workers Union on Monday asked the Egyptian authorities to release five Gaza fishermen, who are still being detained until now.

Through a press statement, the Palestinian Workers’ Union congratulated the fishermen; Raafat Qanan (35) and Tariq Qanan (31) for their release from an Egyptian prison after seven months of detention.

The union hopes it will be a favorable gesture from the Egyptian authorities confirming the strength of the historical relationship between the two nations.

The union, as quoted by MINA from Maan News, revealed that fishermen were beaten and tortured during their detention.

They were prohibited from talking to their families during their detention and their conditions were poor and did not meet the minimum living requirements.

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He explained that the Egyptian authorities sentenced four fishermen to one year in prison, namely Muhammad Subuh and Mahmoud Shabana.

Both were arrested on March 22, 2020, then Abdel Aziz Subuh and Anas Badwan arrested by the Egyptian Navy on June 25, 2020.

While in detention they received torture and cruel treatment.

The union called on Egyptian authorities to treat fishermen as brothers and respect the historical relationship between the Palestinian and Egyptian people.

“We are one body and brothers cannot attack their brother, let alone support the occupation in the siege of the fishermen,” he said.

The union added: “We have been used to Egyptian support for the Palestinian cause throughout the history of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. That’s why we hope the Egyptian government will release the fishermen. ”

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All this time the fishermen sailed in search of a livelihood, and avoided the brutal Israeli occupation, which would seize boats, kill fishermen, and chase them every day.

So, they headed for neighboring Egypt, but were shocked by the attacks on them, and most recently resulted in the deaths of fishermen Mahmoud and Hassan Al-Zaazoua.

Currently their brother, known as Yasser, has not been released by the Egyptian authorities. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)