24 of 149 DOCUMENTS

The Jerusalem Post

June 4, 1989, Sunday

ISRAELI FISHERMAN SHOT BY PATROL

BYLINE: By MICHAEL ROTEM and MENACHEM SHALEV

SECTION: News

LENGTH: 544 words

HIGHLIGHT: An Israeli fisherman was seriously wounded yesterday afternoon as an Egyptian naval boat opened fire on his small craft. Shlomo Yisraeli, 42, went fishing off Taba, along with his son and a friend. They were approached by an Egyptian naval vessel in mid-sea and ordered to stop.

An Israeli fisherman was seriously wounded yesterday afternoon as an Egyptian naval boat opened fire on his small craft.

Shlomo Yisraeli, 42, went fishing off Taba, along with his son and a friend. They were approached by an Egyptian naval vessel in mid-sea and ordered to stop.

For reasons that are still unclear, Yisraeli refused and the Egyptians fired a few warning shots in the air. Yisraeli still did not stop and the Egyptians then fired a few more rounds, wounding him in the hip and causing profuse bleeding.

The Egyptians tried to tow the fishing boat to Taba but Yisraeli's son, Rami, refused to let them tie up to their boat.

The police spokesman said Yisraeli was equipped with all the permits needed for fishing in the area and had notified local authorities before setting sail. Jerusalem is taking a very grave view of yesterday's shooting incident in the Gulf of Eilat and is expected to lodge a strong protest with after Cairo clarifies the details of the incident.

Officials in Jerusalem said last night that while Cairo may have a legitimate grievance against Israeli yacht-owners, Israel cannot accept the resort to such extreme measures. The officials expressed confidence that the Egyptian inquiry would reveal that the shooting was initiated at a very low level, and that it would be roundly condemned by Egyptian authorities.

The fishing boat docked at the Israeli coast north of Taba where the fisherman received first aid and transfusions before being taken to Josephthal Hospital, where he was operated on for torn blood vessels and a fracture of the hip.

Both the IDF military liaison team as well as the embassy in Cairo have asked Egyptian authorities to investigate the incident, which officials in Jerusalem yesterday described as "a very serious matter."

Navigation and fishing rights off the Sinai Coast have long been a source of friction between the Egyptian Navy and Eilat-based shipowners, but yesterday was the first time that the Egyptians opened fire in order to assert their rights over the area.

In talks between Israeli and Egyptian officials in Cairo in April, the Egyptians pledged they would prevent further incidents of Egyptian boats ramming Israeli vessels.

Cairo allows Israeli vessels to enter its territorial waters off Sinai only through the port of entry at Sharm el Sheikh, and does not allow any fishing without a specially-issued permit. The Egyptian military liaison unit last night provided an account of the incident which was at great variance with the Israeli version of events. According to the Egyptians, the vessel had been sailing ten kilometres south of Coral Island, only 20 metres away from the coastline.

According to the Egyptian version, the naval ship had sounded its horn to warn the Israeli ship away, and Egyptian sailors said that they had seen the Israelis throwing unidentified objects into the water.

The Egyptians said that they had only fired warning shots into the air, and that to the best of their knowledge, no one had been injured in the exchange of fire.

Israeli officials expressed surprise at the Egyptian version, and said that they expected a fuller and more accurate account to be provided today.

LOAD-DATE: May 6, 1991

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

Copyright 1989 The Jerusalem Post