Ahead of the month of Ramadan and Id al-Fitr celebrated at its end,
HaMoked filed a number of individual applications on behalf of Israelis who had not met their loved-ones living in the Gaza Strip for many years due to the visit ban imposed by the military. HaMoked stressed the severe cumulative harm caused to the right to family life of these applicants and others in their situation. HaMoked also recalled that in recent years, Israel had followed a lenient policy in some areas relating to travel of people from and into the Gaza Strip.
On June 8, 2015, the GOC Southern Commander announced that he "recommends approving the applications pursuant to the Israel Security Agency’s regulations and examinations". However, the military rejected all eleven applications HaMoked had filed, stating that "the decision has been made in full coordination with the Southern Command”.
On July 16, 2015, HaMoked petitioned the High Court of Justice (HCJ) on behalf of a Palestinian woman who is an Israeli citizen whose application to visit her ailing mother in Gaza during the Muslim holidays of al Adha and al Fitr had been refused. HaMoked noted that a decade had passed since the military last allowed the woman to meet her mother and sisters living in Gaza, and that with each passing day, the harm caused to the family life of the woman and her small children growing. HaMoked recalled that the woman’s request was initially approved – as were other similar requests – but that military officials had recently announced – without prior notice or any explanation – that the requests were ultimately denied. HaMoked went on to assert that “maintaining holiday visits regularly has been a significant aspect of the narrow and rigid criteria for entry of Israelis to the Gaza strip, as formulated by the Respondent [the military]”.
In its response from September 3, 2015, the state noted that “the principle policy decided upon by the GOC Southern Command is that there is no room to enable the entry of Israelis to the Gaza Strip at the present time”. The severe and protracted violation of the Palestinians’ right to family life was ascribed by the state, as usual, to “the unique security-political situation currently existing between the State of Israel and the Gaza Strip”. The petition was deleted following the state’s response.
Meanwhile, the holiday season has ended, and with it evaporated the slim hope of meeting long-missed loved-ones, to which clung the many families divided between Israel and the Gaza Strip.
