During the 31-day reporting period, Gaza Strip border crossings used for goods and civilians movement remained closed. The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) continued to impose the siege and closure as well as economic and social strangulation of the Gaza Strip, resulting in the escalation of poverty and unemployment rates to critical levels. UN reports indicated that 600,000 people (40% of Gaza population) do not have access to sufficient food.

During the reporting period, the most significant effects of closure imposed on Gaza were as follows:

· During the 31-day reporting period, Rafah crossing was opened only for one day and for few hours. It opened to allow 300 Palestinians stuck in the Egyptian to enter to Gaza,

· Beit Hanoon (Eirez) crossing was closed, throughout the reporting period, for Palestinian civilians. Only restricted number of patients were allowed to cross the crossing under very complicated procedures,

· Karm Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) remained completely closed throughout the reporting period,

· Living conditions in the Gaza Strip continued to deteriorate due to the closure and the scarcity of foodstuffs and medicine caused by the price increase,

· Some 900 prisoners from Gaza Strip are still deprived from their right to see their relatives for more than a year,

· The patients allowed to access hospitals in Israel or the West bank decreased to 11 patients daily compared to a daily average of 50 patients in the same month of the last year.

· During the reporting period, 5 patients from the Gaza Strip, including 3 women and a female child, passed away either due to hindering their access to external hospitals or due to shortage of medicine in Gaza hospitals.

· Fuel supplies to the Gaza Strip via Nahal Oz crossing are still very restricted. Only 9.7% of Gaza needs of benzene, 30.9% of diesel and 39.25% of cooking gas were supplied to Gaza during the reporting period,

· 35 waste water treatment plants are still suffering from fuel shortage and approximately 50,000 cubic meters of untreated waste water are daily pumped in the sea causing serious environmental pollution,

· Gaza residents are still facing transportation problems caused by the fuel crisis. This coincided with the start of the final exams of 35,428 secondary students and with the study start for some 52,000 students at universities and colleges.

During the 31-day reporting period, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) continued tightening the stifling siege on the Gaza Strip causing further suffering to the civilians whose right to free movement is being violated for about two years. The siege policy continued to affect every aspect of civilian life, including supplies of food and medicine, fuel, construction materials, and raw materials required for various economic sectors. IOF also continued to prevent exports leaving Gaza, whilst shortages of goods inside the Gaza Strip led to unprecedented price increases. Poverty and unemployment rates are currently estimated at 80% and 55% respectively[1].

During the reporting period, the single most significant problem was the fuel shortages which led to the closure of all gas stations in the Gaza Strip. As a result, public transport was paralyzed, whilst health services, including environmental health services, were seriously affected. Provisions of safe drinking water were also seriously affected. The transport paralysis caused by the fuel crisis affected education and public services facilities; the general secondary exams were disrupted.

In addition, severe restrictions continued to be imposed on civilian movements to and from the Gaza Strip. Rafah International Crossing Point crossing remained closed throughout the 31-day reporting period, while a few civilians were permitted to travel via Beit Hanoun (Erez) Crossing. Civilians in the Gaza Strip remained isolated from the external world including the West Bank, occupied East Jerusalem, and abroad.

Conditions at the Gaza Strip commercial crossings also deteriorated. Al-Mentar (Karni) crossing, the Gaza Strip’s main commercial crossing, remained completely closed for 23 days and was partially opened for 8 days in order to allow the delivery of some food items only. Nahal Oz Crossing remained closed for 11 days for fuel supplies and was partially opened for 20 days to allow the delivery of limited quantities of industrial fuel for the Gaza Strip power station, diesel and cooking gas. Sofa Crossing remained completely closed throughout the 31-day reporting period for aggregate and construction materials, but was opened a few hours per day for 21 days in order to allow the delivery of some humanitarian aid. Karm Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing remained completely closed throughout the 31-day reporting period.

During the reporting period, PCHR documented the death of 5 patients from the Gaza strip due to detaining their right to access to external hospitals or due to shortage in medicine in Gaza hospital. Thus, the number of patients who passed away since tightening the sniffling siege on the Gaza Strip increased to 40, including 13 women and children.

Following are the most significant developments at the Gaza Strip border crossings during the reporting period:

During the 31-day reporting period, severe restrictions continued to be imposed on civilians' movement via Bit Hanoon crossing and Rafah International Crossing Point. Only a very limited number of diplomats, international employees in international organizations and some Palestinian patients were allowed to pass via Beit Hanoon crossing to Israel and the West Bank under very complicated procedures. Following are the most notable developments on Gaza civilian crossings during the reporting period:

· During the reporting period, the Egyptian authorities exceptionally allowed a limited number of Palestinian civilians to cross the crossing as follows:

1. on 22 May 2008, 13 Palestinians, including patients returning from treatment journeys and Hamas delegation returning from Cairo, were allowed to enter the Gaza Strip,

2. on 24 May 2008, 2 Palestinian civilians were allowed to enter to Egypt via the crossing,

3. on 18 May 2008, 35 civilians, including patients and their companions, returning from treatment journeys entered Gaza via the crossing,

4. on 27 May 2008, a UN fact-finding mission, headed by The Honorable Desmond Tutu, investigating a massacre committed by the IOF in Nov. 2006 against Al-Athamna family in Beit Hanoon, was allowed to enter Gaza via the crossing,

5. on 31 May 2008, a 10-member delegation from the American Council for the National Interest was allowed to enter Gaza via the crossing,

6. on 1 Jun. 2008, 29 Palestinians, including patients and their companions returning from treatment journeys in Egypt and Turkey, were allowed to enter to Gaza via the crossing. Also in the same day, 19 patients were allowed to enter Egypt for treatment. The American delegation was allowed to exit Gaza via the crossing on this day.

7. on 10 Jun. 2008, 17 civilians, all of them wounded people who had been treated in Turkey, were allowed to return to Gaza via the crossing,

8. on 12 Jun. 2008, 11 handicapped athletes were allowed to exist Gaza via the crossing to participate in a sports course for the handicapped,

9. on 14 Jun. 2008, a 4-member delegation from Hamas was allowed to enter to Egypt to discuss the Tahde'ya efforts with Egyptian officers,

10. on 18 Jun. 2008, 17 patients returning from treatment journey in Egypt were allowed to enter to Gaza via the crossing,

11. on 19 Jun. 2008, about 250 Palestinian civilians stuck on the Egyptian side were allowed to enter to Gaza. On the same day, 3 Palestinian civilians were allowed to exit Gaza via the crossing,

12. on 21 Jun. 2008, 7 handicapped athletes were allowed to enter to Gaza via the crossing after their participation to qualify for a sport event for the handicapped,

· Hundreds of Palestinian civilians, including dozens of students and patients in need for urgent treatment, are still stuck in the Gaza Strip since June 2007.

· According to the Border Crossing Management of the Palestinian Police, 5,571 civilians from the Gaza Strip are seeking traveling abroad as follows:

- there are 2,383 civilians who seek traveling to Arab countries whilst there are 860 civilians are seeking traveling to non-Arab states,

- the 860 civilians seeking traveling to non-Arab states include 751 persons who have residency permits and 109 who have visas,

- there are some 650 students who were accepted for studies in international universities; including 534 students in Arab universities in the Arab World and 71 students in universities in non-Arab states,

- the 2383 civilians who have residency permits in the Arab states are distributed as follows: 796 civilians in Saudi Arabia, 380 in Jordan, 152 in Morocco, 931 in the Arab Emirates and 124 in other Arab states,

- those wanting to travel to Egypt are 1969; including 1439 civilians who have residency permits in Egypt and 230 civilians who are stuck in Gaza.

During the reporting period, the most significant developments at the crossing were as follows:

· severe restrictions continued to be imposed on civilians' movement via the crossing throughout the reporting period,

· IOF allowed diplomats, some international employees in international organizations and some patients with critical diseases to travel through the crossing. IOF completely closed the crossing for these categories for 6 days during the reporting period. Also during the reporting period, IOF allowed 10 merchants daily to travel through the crossing and completely closed the crossing for them for 14 days,

· the IOF completely closed the crossing for 5 days for no reasons and 1 day for a Jewish religious holiday,

Since 6 June 2008, Gaza families have been deprived from visiting their some 900 relatives in jail in Israel for no reasons. This denial is a violation of all conventions and covenants relating to prisoners rights. 150 out of the Gaza Strip 900 prisoners had already been deprived of all visitation rights prior to suspending a visitation program run by the International Committee of the Red Cross on the grounds of security.

During the reporting period, IOF continued to hinder the passage of dozens of patients via the crossing. It deprived hundreds of those requiring urgent treatment in the West Bank or Israel from their right to receive treatment. Patients who obtained permits for treatment in Israel or in the West Bank averaged 11/ day. This means there has been a decrease of patients given permits of 15% and 45% in comparison with the last month and the month before respectively. The daily average of patients who obtained permits the previous month was 13 and for the month prior to that was 20. The decrease in comparison with the same period of the last year amounted to 78% since the patients given permits averaged 50 per day in that period of the last year.

PCHR notes that patients applying for treatment in Israel or the West Bank are suffering from serious diseases and are in urgent need for treatment that is not available in Gaza. Furthermore, these patients are not able to access Egyptian hospitals due to the continued closure of Rafah crossing. Following are the most significant developments at the health status level at Beit Hanoon crossing during the reporting period:

1. on 9 June 2008, the IOF completely closed the crossing for patients for Jewish holidays,

2. the crossing was also completely closed for patients on 30 May 2008 and from 7 to 21 June 2008 for weekends and for unspecified reasons,

3. IOF allowed 345 patients to pass via the crossing for treatment in Israel and the West Bank,

4. 200 applications for travel permits for patients have been submitted by the Ministry of Health representative in the District Civil Liaison Office are still awaiting responses,

5. IOF continue to prevent Palestinian ambulances from transporting patients to hospitals in Israel or in the West Bank. However, it allows some ambulances transporting critically ill patients to deliver patients to Israeli ambulances. During their passage via Beit Hanoun crossing, Palestinian patients are subjected to humiliating inspection procedures, which can seriously delay their access and can result in patients being forced to return to the Gaza Strip,

6. During the reporting period, PCHR documented the death of 5 patients, including 3 women and 1 girl, due to preventing them from traveling outside of Gaza for treatment or due to shortages of medication. To date, the number of patients who have died as a result of being prevented from traveling for treatment outside of Gaza or as a result of shortages of medication inside Gaza, stands at 40, including 13 women and 9 children. The patients who died during the reporting period are:

· on 27 May 2008, Jehad Abdol Rahim Jaber Ali, 20 from Jabalia Refugee Camp, died when he was prevented from passing Beit Hanoon crossing for treatment in Tal Hashomer Hospital in Israel.

“Following medical tests in Al-Shefa'a Hospital on 17 April 2008, my brother was detected to have bone marrow cancer. We applied for a referral to Tal Hashomer Hospital in Israel and we got approval on 22 April 2008. 3 weeks later, we had a call from the Palestinian Civil Liaison Office telling us to go to Beit Hanoon crossing for an interview with Israeli intelligence officers. On 14 May 2008, I went with my brother Jehad to Beit Hanoon where we were questioned. During the questioning, my brother's health deteriorated. A doctor came and treated him for half an hour. When my brother's health stabilized and the questioning finished, the officer told us to return home and wait for the permit. Then my brother's health deteriorated and was forced to enter Al-Shefa'a hospital due to the delay in issuing the permit for treatment in Israel. His condition deteriorated daily until he died at about 19:00 o'clock on 27 May 2008.”

The Department of Treatment Abroad in Al-Shefa'a Hospital reported that Ali got a referral for treatment in Tal Hashomer Hospital on 27 April 2008.

· on 3 June 2008, Su'ad Khamis Ibrahim Abu Jarad, 72 from Izbat Beit Hanoon, died after her health deteriorated. The deceased was prevented from accessing hospitals in Egypt although she exerted efforts beyond her capacity as an elderly woman and although she reached Rafah crossing several time as she was prevented from passing.

Sahar Abu Jarad is the daughter-in-law the deceased woman. She informed PCHR that her mother in law was diagnosed with having kidney stones and she received treatment at Al-Shefa'a Hospital. However, the deceased's health deteriorated since she also already suffered from diabetes and heart problems. Sahar Abu Jarad added:

"Following a sudden deterioration in the health of my mother-in-law, we applied for a medical referral to Naser Institute in Egypt on 26 March 2008. We could not reach the hospital because Rafah crossing was closed. Furthermore, we could not apply for a referral to Israel since the Israeli hospitals only receive very critical cases. On 28 April 2008, we renewed the expired referral and went to Rafah crossing as we knew it would open for patients for a single day but we could not pass. On that day we returned home when her health deteriorated. After the second referral expired, we renewed it for the third time. We waited for the crossing to open but to no avail. The health of my mother-in-law continued to deteriorate and we took her to Kamal Adwan Hospital several times. She died at home on 3 June 2008."

The Department of Treatment Abroad in Al-Shefa'a Hospital reported that Abu Jarad got a referral for treatment in Naser Institute on 26 March 2008.

· on 4 June 2008, Rania Abdol Salam Mohammed Thabet, 23 from Al-Saftawi neighborhood in Gaza city, died after she suddenly suffered dramatic health deterioration. The deceased was prevented from traveling to Egypt for treatment.

Kamal Thabet, 48, is her uncle. He stated that his niece was diagnosed with cancer on 13 May 2008. We immediately submitted for a medical referral to Naser Intitute in Egypt and received an approval and accomplished all procedures. My niece who needed bone marrow transplant waited 2 weeks for the opening of Rafah crossing. Her health then deteriorated and she entered the cancer department in Al-Shefa'a hospital 10 days before she died. At Al-Shefa'a hospital, she had chemotherapy but she had no health improvements. She died on 4 June 2008."

The Department of Treatment Abroad in Al-Shefa'a Hospital reported that Thabet got a referral for treatment in Naser Institute on 20 May 2008.

· on 9 June 2008, Amina Subhi Ali Mqat, 55 from Al-Tufah neighborhood in Gaza city, died due to preventing her from traveling to follow her health abroad.

Mohammed Mqat, 24, her son, informed PCHR that his mother suffered ffrom cardiomyopathy and from sporadic water on the chest for 20 years. He added:

"At the start of 2006, my mother received treatment in Egypt. Doctors installed an apparatus to regulate the heart rate. The doctors advised her to follow-up with the hospital every 3 months. Thence, she kept following up with the Egyptian hospitals for analysis and medical checks. The closure of Rafah crossing for about a year deprived her from following up on her health condition. Her health started to deteriorate. We took her to Al-Shefa'a hospital for treatment but to no avail. At about 22:00 o'clock on 19 June 2008, my mother died. Doctors said she died because of a defect in the apparatus installed to regulate the heart rate. This defect occurred because the apparatus was not followed up for a long time".

The Department of Treatment Abroad in Al-Shefa'a Hospital reported that Mqat got a referral for treatment in Palestine Hospital in Cairo on 23 March 2008.

· on 17 June 2008, a child, Manal Odeh Mesbah Odeh, 15 , from Al-Zeitoon neighborhood, died following a severe deterioration on her health. The child, with her father, were subjected to cruel procedures at Beit hanoon crossing. The cruel procedures included waiting for long hours, investigation and then returning to Gaza without accessing the Arab Healthcare Center in Ramallah for treatment. The child was also prevented to access the Egyptian hospitals due to Rafah crossing closure.

According to her father, the child suffered kidney cancer that was detected on 27 March 2007. The child underwent surgery at Al-Shefa'a Hospital on 3 April 2007. Doctors took a sample from a tumor in her left kidney and tested it. A month later, results revealed it was a malignant tumor. The father added:

"We immediately applied for a medical referral and I got approval for treatment in Dar Al-Salam Hospital in Egypt on 8 May 2007. Manal received treatment and then were returned to Gaza on 1 June 2007. She continued receiving the treatment at Al-Shefa'a Hospital where she received 20 doses of chemotherapy. On 31 October 2007, doctors were obliged to stop the chemotherapy given to Manal. She then had paresis. She suffered from inflation of the surgery she had in April 2007 and severe pain throughout her body. I applied for a medical referral and I got approval for treatment in the Arab Healthcare Center in Ramallah on 9 March 2008. At about 6:00 o'clock on 9 March 2008, I arrived with my daughter at Beit Hanoon crossing. We registered our names and waited. The crossing opened at 8:00 o'clock. We waited under very cruel conditions till 16:00 o'clock when IOF at the crossing called the Palestinian Liaison Office and told them to let me enter for an interview. When I got into the crossing, my ID card was taken and I was asked to stay in the waiting area. I waited for an hour. Then I was led to the interrogation room underground. I was checked and questioned. They asked me why I was at the crossing. I replied I was there for my daughter's treatment in Ramallah. They asked me who covered the referral costs. I replied it was the Ministry of Health. They asked me about the transport costs to Ramallah and I replied I had them because I had work. They asked me about my wife and her mobile number. I was questioned about my sons and their work and about my sons-in law, their work and phone numbers. They took my mobile and took all the data it contained. They then asked me about the phone numbers of my son-in-law and my daughter. I asked them for my mobile to give them the numbers. In that moment, my wife phoned to inform when we were leaving to Ramallah. The Israeli officer took the mobile and told her we were leaving in 15 minutes. Then the questioning continued for an hour. The officer who questioned me gave my ID to another officer and asked me to go with him and to wait in the waiting area. I waited for 2 hours. Then a third officer came, took me by my hand, led me to a gate and returned me to Gaza. In the following day, I went to the Department of Treatment Abroad in Al-Shefa'a Hospital and applied for a medical referral to Egypt. A week later, I got an approval for treatment in Naser Institute in Cairo. We could not leave the Strip since Rafah crossing was closed. Accordingly, my daughter's health deteriorated and we took her to Al-shefa'a hospital several times. She was given blood units and paregorics. The shortage or unavailability of medicine required for my daughter and the delay of our access to Egypt led to her death at about 5:30 on Tuesday, 17 June 2008".

The Department of Treatment Abroad in Al-Shefa'a Hospital reported that Odeh got a referral for treatment in Naser Institute Hospital in Cairo on 14 January 2008.

During the reporting period, the IOF continued to prevent the export of Gaza products and to reduce imports into the Gaza Strip. Imports were limited to international aid and limited quantities of basic goods.

· the crossing completely closed for 23 days for exports and imports. It opened for imports for a few hours per day for 8 days to allow the delivery of 489 truckloads of grains and animal fodder,

· IOF continued to prevent Gaza exports to Israel, the West Bank, and abroad. This ban has was enforced since 13 June 2007,

· Since 13 June 2007, the crossing has been completely closed for 303 days. It was partially opened for 70 days to deliver wheat, flour and fodder. The continued closure of Al-Mentar crossing caused almost complete paralysis in civilians' life and exposed the entire strip to a humanitarian crisis,

· The severe reduction of imports via the crossing caused serious shortages of foodstuffs, medicine and medical supplies. The crossing closure destroyed the Gaza economy; 70% of Gaza production sectors have shut down[2].

· The crossing completely closed for 10 days. It opened for imports for a few hours daily on 21 days to allow the delivery of limited quantities of humanitarian aid to UNRWA and to the World Food Program (WFP) and some basic goods for local traders,

· IOF continued to completely ban all imports of aggregate and construction materials to the Gaza Strip. This ban has been enforced since 15 June 2007,

· The crossing opened only to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to UNRWA and WFP. 1047 truckloads were allowed via the crossing. The trucks carried rice, flour, powder milk and medicine to UNRWA, Ministry of Social Affairs, Ministry of Health and UNICEF. In addition, limited quantities of sugar, fruits, frozen meat, dairy products and salts were delivered via the crossing to local traders,

· IOF banned the imports of livestock. IOF imposed ban on livestock imports to Gaza strip on 18 December 2007. Thence, IOF allowed the imports of 1864 heads of cattle that is not sufficient to the Gaza Strip demand of fresh meat; Gaza strip consumes 3,000 heads of cattle per month. As a result, fresh meat prices increased from about 30 NIS to about 50 NIS,

· The construction sector crisis continued. Due to chronic shortages of construction materials, prices have quadrupled since the closure tightened. This has hindered dozens of development projects across the Gaza Strip. Construction and housing projects have been indefinitely postponed, causing the layoff of thousands of construction workers.

· the crossing remained completely closed throughout the 31-day reporting period. Neither humanitarian aid nor basic goods were permitted to enter to Gaza via the crossing.

· the crossing completely closed for 11 days causing the expiry of fuel stocks in the Gaza strip,

· Very limited quantities of benzene (only 361,000 liters) were permitted to enter to Gaza via the crossing. This constitutes only 9.7% of Gaza demand of benzene for the reported period. Prior to the IOF decision to reduce fuel supplied to Gaza, 120,000 liter of benzene used to be delivered to Gaza daily,

· The crossing was closed for diesel supplies for 15 days. It opened for 16 days to permit the delivery of 3,357,950 liters of diesel (30.9% of Gaza demand for the reported period). Prior to IOF decision to reduce fuel supplied to Gaza, 350,000 liter of diesel used to be delivered to Gaza every day,

· The crossing closed for cooking gas supplies for 11 days. It opened for 20 days to permit the delivery of 3,302.79 tons of cooking gas (39.25% of Gaza demand for the reported period). Gaza daily demand of cooking gas is 350 tons.

Date	Benzene in liters	Diesel in liters	Cooking gas in tons	Industrial fuel in liters
26-5-2008	00	268,100	166.90	742,000
27-5-2008	70,000	155,000	252,00	736,000
28-5-2008	00	00	88.00	00
29-5-2008	00	00	00	00
30-5-2008	00	00	00	00
31-5-2008	00	00	00	00
1-6-2008	00	260,000	620.00	775,000
2-6-2008	00	260,000	210.00	779,000
3-6-2008	76,000	280,000	236.00	676,000
4-6-2008	00	00	83.00	00
5-6-2008	00	00	00	00
6-6-2008	00	00	00	00
7-6-2008	00	00	00	00
8-6-2008	00	98,800	80.20	426,000
9-6-2008	00	00	00	00
10-6-2008	00	150,000	80.00	270,000
11-6-2008	00	179,000	130.00	279,000
12-6-2008	00	81,200	88,38	108,400
13-6-2008	45,000	131,000	173.00	510,000
14-6-2008	00	00	00	00
15-6-2008	00	00	88.61	212,000
16-6-2008	00	127,000	85.00	126,000
17-6-2008	00	00	00	00
18-6-2008	00	68,430	26.88	83,000
19-6-2008	00	254,000	380.69	1,085,600
20-6-2008	68,000