A/HRC/10/27 page 4 B. Remedies and redress for victims and survivors 11. The mission recommended that Israel, with regard to remedies and redress for victims and survivors, remove obstacles to judicial remedies; pay victims adequate compensation to individuals without delay and the Beit Hanoun community reparation in the form of a memorial to the victims; and facilitate access to health services. 12. As at January 2009, obstacles confronting victims and survivors to seek judicial remedies3 had not been removed. Furthermore, no compensation had been paid and reparations had not been made to the victims and survivors of the shelling of Beit Hanoun. 13. The ongoing closure of the Gaza Strip has had a negative impact on peoples’ access to health services, including physiotherapy services. The Israeli restrictions on the flow of medical goods and personnel into the Gaza Strip as well as those on the access of victims to health care elsewhere has continued. The status of essential drug stocks is just one indicator of the impact of the closure; the World Health Organization (WHO) classifies 416 drugs as essential by international standards, yet the Gaza Strip continues to suffer from critical shortages of these drugs on account of the closure. The Ministry of Health in Gaza has reported that 105 drugs on the essential drug list were at zero stock level at the central drug store, even before Operation Cast Lead. 14. Another indicator of the impact of the closure is the referral abroad of patients seeking health services otherwise not available in the Gaza Strip. Between 1 October 2007 and 1 December 2008 - even before the recent attacks - WHO confirmed the deaths of 59 patients who were waiting to leave Gaza to reach specialized referral health services outside. In October 2008, three patients died, one of kidney failure at the Erez crossing while waiting to enter Israel. WHO has reported that, since 25 December 2008, the Ministry of Health has requested approval from the Israeli authorities for 21 patients to leave Gaza to seek medical care in Israeli or West Bank hospitals; of those, only 7 were allowed to leave. Erez has been closed for patient referrals since 27 December 2008. 15. Since Operation Cast Lead, the health-care system in Gaza has been overwhelmed by the sheer influx of injured people. The ability of the Gaza health-care system, already depleted and fragile, to cope with the constant arrival of wounded people has been stretched to the limit, and medical personnel have been under severe strain. Moreover, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has reported that 34 health facilities were damaged, 16 health personnel were killed and 22 wounded while on duty during Operation Cast Lead. C. Accountability and the rule of law 16. The mission had recommended, with regard to accountability and the rule of law, that an independent, impartial and transparent investigation be conducted into the Beit Hanoun shelling, and that Israeli and Palestinian authorities create a joint monitoring mechanism on the human rights situation of civilians in conflict. 3 A/HRC/9/26, paras. 67-71.