Palestinian officials say the death toll from 75 days of Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has passed 20,000 or nearly 1% of the population of the besieged territory. At least 8,000 children are among the dead. On Wednesday, a World Health Organization emergency team reached the al-Ahli Hospital, which had been northern Gaza’s last functioning medical facility where people could undergo surgery. WHO team coordinator Sean Casey says conditions have further deteriorated, with the bodies of the dead placed in rows in the courtyard, patients who’ve gone weeks without needed surgery and growing rates of postoperative infections due to a lack of antibiotics.
