A/HRC/31/44 issuance and renewal of passports of Palestinians alleged to be affiliated with Hamas. 89 During the reporting period, the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights received four complaints from Palestinians from Gaza whose passport applications were reportedly denied. 77. Also of concern are reports received during the reporting period that Gazan security services have banned Gaza residents from leaving through Erez without judicial orders. According to the Independent Commission for Human Rights, on three occasions members of the Fatah Central Committee and the Fatah Revolutionary Council were denied permission to travel outside of Gaza. On 28 December 2014, the Gazan authorities at the checkpoint reportedly prevented 37 children between 5 and 12 years of age, orphaned as a result of the 2014 escalation of hostilities, and five adult chaperones from exiting Gaza to visit Israel and the West Bank. 90 The authorities claimed that the children were denied travel to protect their culture and safeguard them from the normalization of ties with Israel.91 78. Palestinian political divisions have also had a broader negative impact on Palestinians’ enjoyment of their civil and political rights. Among the acts of concern monitored by OHCHR during the reporting period are the excessive use of force, the arbitrary arrest and detention of political activists, the use of torture and other ill-treatment and restrictions on freedom of expression (A/HRC/31/40). 79. Political divisions further hinder the realization of economic, social and cultural rights. The continued non-payment of civil servants recruited by the authorities in Gaza is particularly problematic. At least 40,000 civil servants and security personnel have not received a salary, only occasional humanitarian payments, since April 2014.92 80. This has, in turn, negatively affected access to education, health and social welfare, among other aspects. In Gaza, the health sector recorded an absenteeism rate of approximately 50 per cent in January 2015, especially as staff could not afford transportation costs.93 In December 2014, 750 cleaning personnel at the Ministry of Health in Gaza went on a 16-day strike because they had not been paid for six months. Consequently, cleaning services for 13 hospitals and 56 health centres were halted, and the Ministry of Health suspended some medical services, including obstetric and gynaecological services.94 IV. Recommendations A. Recommendations to the Government of Israel 81. Under international human rights and humanitarian law, the Israeli authorities have the obligation to facilitate the free movement of Palestinians within the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. Any exception must comply with international law, which means that restrictions are justified only for imperative reasons of security and only in response to a specific security threat. Israel should lift 89 90 91 92 93 94 See afa.ps/post/146208 (Arabic). Gisha, ”Thirty-seven students travelled abroad”. See http://alray.ps/ar/index.php?act=post&id=130062 (Arabic). Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, “The monthly humanitarian bulletin” , January 2015, p. 1. Ibid., pp. 4-5. Ibid. 17