A/HRC/28/80 III. Human rights violations by all duty-bearers A. Israel 1. Blockade of Gaza and access restricted areas 7. The blockade imposed by Israel on Gaza since 2007 in violation of international law continued to affect adversely the enjoyment of human rights in Gaza, in particular economic, social and cultural rights (A/HRC/28/45, paras. 34–42). In the access restricted areas, the continued use of live fire by Israel Defense Forces resulted in the injury and death of several Palestinians. 8. Import and export restrictions imposed by Israel continue to reduce economic activity in Gaza, thereby stifling the economy. 3 The Kerem Shalom crossing, the only operating commercial crossing between Gaza and Israel, allows a maximum of 500 truckloads of goods to enter Gaza a day, which is insufficient to meet the needs of the population. According to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the weekly average number of truckloads in 2014, when compared to pre-blockade levels, stood at 32 per cent for imports and less than 1 per cent for exports. 4 Unemployment increased in Gaza from 26.4 per cent in the second quarter of 2007 to 44.5 per cent in the same quarter of 2014. 5 Before the Israeli military operation “Protective Edge”, 57 per cent of the population in Gaza were food insecure; and by the end of 2014, 70 per cent were dependent on humanitarian aid.6 9. Israel continues to limit the passage of Palestinians through the Erez crossing to “exceptional humanitarian cases”. As a result, Palestinians in Gaza were unable to go to the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, or abroad, for educational or professional purposes. They thus relied heavily on the Rafah crossing, between Gaza and Egypt, until its closure in October 2014. Since then, the Erez crossing is the only option for Palestinians to leave Gaza. 10. The access of Palestinians in Gaza to emergency medical treatment outside Gaza through Erez remained unpredictable and fluctuated. Given the vast number of seriously injured Palestinians requiring medical treatment during and after the escalation of hostilities in July and August 2014, and the damage sustained to the already limited health facilities and capacity in Gaza, the number of permits granted did not meet the needs of the population. With the repeated closure of the Rafah crossing, many people requiring medical treatment unavailable in Gaza were unable to seek medical treatment outside of it. 11. The restrictions on the freedom of movement of Palestinians from Gaza were further compounded by the frequent closure of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt. Prior to the escalation, the crossing had operated irregularly, with entry and exit limited to Palestinians with dual citizenship, those with foreign visas and/or Egyptian residency status, and patients requiring emergency medical care.7 The crossing was open daily between 26 August and 24 October 2014 for the same category of people, but was closed 3 4 5 6 7 4 See reliefweb, Gaza: Fact Sheet, September 2014. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Protection of Civilians report, reporting period 23 – 29 December 2014. See Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Labour Force Surveys (April – June 2007) and (April – June 2014). Gisha, the Gaza Cheat Sheet: Real Data on the Gaza Closure, 19 January 2015. Gisha, “One step at a time: Israel revises criteria for exiting Gaza”, 26 October 2014.