A/HRC/5/20 page 16 9. Let me say here that the Mission was aware that another fact-finding mission in relation to the incidents at Beit Hanoun had been established by the General Assembly on the 17th of November 2006. Informal consultations were held at the Secretariat level to ensure that the two Missions’ visits to Beit Hanoun did not occur on the same days. We understand that the General Assembly Mission was also not provided with the necessary cooperation of Israel, and consequently did not travel to Beit Hanoun nor has it produced a report. Mr. President 10. In light of these factors, the Mission concluded that the failure by Israel to issue the necessary official visas frustrated the very core of our mandate. Without travelling to Beit Hanoun and meeting the victims and survivors, the Mission would not be in a position to independently assess their situation nor to formulate recommendations for protection in the future. The option of interviewing victims in third countries was not feasible for - as I have noted earlier - only six of the victims were hospitalized outside Gaza and only three of those outside Israel. 11. Although a significant amount of information on the Beit Hanoun situation was provided to the Mission in Geneva, the Archbishop and I concluded that a substantive report relying on second-hand information and insights was not envisaged in the clear wording of Resolution S-3/1, which explicitly asked the mission to travel to Beit Hanoun, meet with victims and survivors, undertake assessments and make recommendations on the basis of these. 12. That said, the information provided suggests that the Israeli military operations in and around Beit Hanoun in November 2006 resulted in grave human rights violations. The documented loss of life and injuries to civilians have consequences not only under human rights law but also under international humanitarian law. Apart from the broader so-called “Autumn Rains” operation of the Israeli Defence Force, the shelling of Beit Hanoun around 5.35 a.m. on the 8th of November 2006 resulted in the deaths of 19 people (including 7 children) and injury to 51. Sixteen of those killed were members of the same family. Beyond possible violations of the right to life, numerous credible reports link Israeli action to violations of human rights relating to health, food, housing and education. The damage to physical infrastructure from the shelling of Beit Hanoun compounded the worsening situation in the town after a week of Israeli military operations. According to United Nations sources, at the time of the shelling most areas of the town were without electricity and water and there had been extensive infrastructure damage, primary health-care services had ceased to exist, and 18 homes had been demolished, with a further 150 damaged. Mr. President Distinguished delegates 13. The seriousness of the allegations relating to Israeli military activity in and around Beit Hanoun last November should not be understated. In order to ascertain what happened and to assess the situation of those affected, the international