According to a report released by the Palestinian Ministry of Health, 46 patients, including 10 children and 14 women, died in the first 78 days of the most recent truce between Hamas and Israel.
The report stated that the Israeli siege of Gaza that began in June 2007 is entirely to blame for a total of 241 patient deaths. The siege has left the majority of hospitals without adequate medical supplies and equipment. The Israel military has refused to let patients travel outside of Gaza, making it impossible for the ill to seek out hospitals that are better equipped with supplies and medications.
Not surprisingly, Israel has not honored the conditions set out in the truce. Palestinians are still being harassed, borders are still blocked and hospitals continue to lack basic supplies. It is estimated that if conditions do not improve soon, more than 1,500 critically-ill patients face the possibility of death.
