Boatless in Gaza: using old fridge doors to catch fish

Israeli bombardment over more than 15 months of war between Israel and Hamas has destroyed most of the boats in the harbour, wrecking the fishermen's means of making a living.

"We're in a very difficult situation today, and struggling with the fishing. There are no fishing boats left. They've all been destroyed and tossed on the ground," Habib told AFP.

"I made this 'boat' from refrigerator doors and cork -- and thankfully it worked."

So he could continue feeding his family, Habib came up with the idea of stuffing cork into old fridge doors to make them buoyant.

He covered one side with wood and the other with plastic sheeting to help make the makeshift paddleboard waterproof.

Habib also crafted a fishing cage out of wire because of the lack of nets, but admitted that his resulting catch was "small".

The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization said in December that the conflict had taken Gaza's "once thriving fishing sector to the brink of collapse".

"Gaza's average daily catch between October 2023 to April 2024 dropped to just 7.3 percent of 2022 levels, causing a $17.5 million production loss," the FAO said.

The war in Gaza was sparked by Palestinian militant group Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, most of them civilians, according to official figures.

Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,458 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.

The UN considers these casualty figures to be reliable.

- 'Learn how to swim' -

Using dough as bait, Habib now fishes mainly inside the small port area.

Despite the fragile ceasefire that came into force on January 19, and which largely halted the fighting, Habib said that fishing outside the port is not allowed.

"If we go (outside the fishermen's harbour), the Israeli boats will shoot at us, and that's a problem we suffer from a lot."

Habib said he catches enough fish to feed his family and tries to help others by selling the rest at an affordable price.

After dividing his catch into small plastic bags, the fisherman sells some at the harbour market where prices can be high.

The first phase of the Gaza truce, which ended on March 1, had enabled the entry of vital food, shelter and medical assistance into the Palestinian territory.

Israel announced on March 2 that it was blocking aid deliveries to Gaza, where Palestinians say they fear food shortages and price hikes.

Several other fishermen, particularly the younger generation, have also taken to using the new makeshift floating platforms.

Habib sees the home-made paddleboards as having a dual purpose.

"If we wanted to raise a new generation to learn how to swim, boats should be made for them from refrigerator doors, and then everyone would learn how to swim, row and sail," he said.

"Thank God, now they've learned how to swim," he added, looking out over the water at children trying to keep their balance.