On November 27th, Darlene Wallach, a San Jose, California resident, was deported from Israel, departing Tel Aviv for New York on an El Al flight. She had been arrested, along with two other human rights observers and 15 Palestinians, by Israeli authorities while on a fishing boat in Gaza waters on November 18th.

Ms. Wallach traveled as part of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) which encourages international observers to report on conditions in Palestine. The ISM is a Palestinian-led movement committed to resisting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land using nonviolent, direct-action methods and principles. The ISM aims to support and strengthen the Palestinian popular resistance by providing the Palestinian people with international protection.

Three Palestinian fishing vessels confiscated by Israeli naval forces in Gazan waters were returned around the same time Ms. Wallach was deported. The fifteen Palestinian fishermen who were abducted during the operation in which Ms. Wallach was arrested have since been released. The boats' return followed an appeal filed in the Israeli Supreme Court on behalf of the owners. Lawyers intended to challenge the arbitrary limits imposed on Gazan fishermen by the Israeli navy, which are contrary to international agreement.

The boats' captains reported damage to their vessels; one trawler had to be towed in by a second due to engine damage and expensive equipment went missing. The fishermen's loss of earnings over the last ten days is still being estimated.

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Confiscated Fishing Boats Returned | Mercury News to Readers: Stay Stupid | International Solidarity Movement