Dozens of Gazans have died awaiting Israeli medical care

Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 8, 2008

Fifty-one Palestinians from the Gaza Strip have died over the past 11 months while waiting for permits to enter Israel for medical treatment or after having been denied permission to enter, according to the World Health Organization. The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza says 245 people have died since June last year from factors relating to the partial closure of Gaza's only two access points. Since Israel signed a truce in June with the militant group that rules Gaza, it has lessened restrictions on the transfer of goods into Gaza, at the same time allowing fewer patients to cross into Israel for treatment. It is impossible to know how many of those might have been successfully treated and how many might have died regardless of access to better healthcare, said World Health Organization representatives.