24 Mar 2026
Dr Hussam Abu Safia ‘systematically denied’ medical treatment in Israeli detention, UN special rapporteurs warn.
United Nations experts are calling on Israel to immediately release Dr Hussam Abu Safia, warning that the Palestinian physician from Gaza has been subjected to “severe torture” and other abuses in Israeli detention.
In a statement on Tuesday, UN special rapporteurs Tlaleng Mofokeng and Ben Saul said they had received reports that Abu Safia’s health condition “remains dire”.
“He has been systematically denied critical medical examination and treatment, and deprived of essential care to such an extent that his life, health, and wellbeing have been gravely endangered,” they said.
Abu Safia, the former director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, was detained by Israeli forces in December 2024 amid Israel’s genocidal war against Palestinians in the coastal enclave.
He was arrested after refusing to leave the hospital, which was the last functioning health facility in Gaza’s north, amid Israeli attacks.
Like many other detainees from the Gaza Strip, Israel has held Abu Safia without charge or trial, prompting widespread condemnation.
His arrest and detention are “a reflection of Israel’s systematic targeting of Palestinian health workers and the decimation of the healthcare system in Gaza in order to inflict conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians”, Amnesty International said.
More than 900 attacks on healthcare sector
Gaza’s healthcare network has been decimated by Israel’s war on the enclave, with more than 930 attacks on the sector recorded since October 2023, according to World Health Organization (WHO) figures from last month.
All 36 hospitals in the Strip have suffered damage due to Israeli attacks, the WHO said, while only half of all hospitals are partially functional.
Palestinian healthcare workers have also been targeted throughout the war.
Humanitarian group Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) said at least 1,722 medical workers were killed between October 2023 and October 2025 – an average of more than two killed every day.
.
We remind our readers that publication of articles on our site does not mean that we agree with what is written. Our policy is to publish anything which we consider of interest, so as to assist our readers in forming their opinions. Sometimes we even publish articles with which we totally disagree, since we believe it is important for our readers to be informed on as wide a spectrum of views as possible.
