Detained Gaza doctor Hussam Abu Safia shows signs of torture, family says

Gaza infirmary manager appears successful Israeli tribunal shackled, arsenic lawyer and household request release, fearing for his life.

A salient Palestinian doc abducted by Israel successful precocious 2024 and held successful detention ever since has appeared by video nexus astatine an Israeli Supreme Court proceeding successful Jerusalem, with his household saying helium shows signs of disposable torture.

Dr Hussam Abu Safia, manager of Kamal Adwan Hospital successful bluish Gaza, demanded his contiguous merchandise aft months of imprisonment erstwhile helium appeared connected Wednesday. Footage showed him looking noticeably thinner successful his look and astir his abdomen.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3UN experts impulse Israel to escaped Gaza doc amid reports of ‘severe torture’
• list 2 of 3Dr Hussam Abu Safiya’s lawyer reveals maltreatment helium faces successful Israeli prison
• list 3 of 3The Disappearance of Dr Abu Safiya

“My detention is unjust and arbitrary, and I request my contiguous release,” Abu Safia told the tribunal done his defence lawyer, Nasser Abu Odeh. “I americium a paediatrician who provides aesculapian services and attraction to patients, the wounded and susceptible radical successful the Gaza Strip.”

Abu Safia has been held without charge, according to the Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), an Israeli rights group, for much than 500 days.

“Dr Hussam remains successful solitary confinement successful Nafha Prison. He appeared successful tribunal via screen, handcuffed and shackled, the tribunal refused to region the shackles,” his lawyer Abu Odeh told Al Jazeera.

“He has not received aesculapian attraction oregon the medications helium requires for his chronic illness. He continues to endure from terrible backmost and cervix symptom pursuing an assault, and is experiencing imaginativeness problems aft his glasses were confiscated and person not yet been returned.”

Speaking to Al Jazeera aft the tribunal session, Abu Safia’s son, Ilyas Abu Safia, said: “When we saw his latest image, we received it with shock, with tears and with weeping.

“We did not lone spot the look of a begetter we person missed for galore agelong months, we saw the marks of torture, symptom and exhaustion intelligibly etched connected his face.”

Abu Odeh added that disposable signs of tegument illness had appeared connected the doctor’s hands, a information helium said was wide among Palestinian governmental prisoners.

“It appears the Israeli authorities are deliberately withholding aesculapian care successful bid to further oppress Palestinian detainees held wrong these prisons.”

Held without charge

The Israeli service seized Abu Safia connected December 27, 2024, during a raid connected Kamal Adwan Hospital.

The doc had antecedently defied Israeli forced displacement orders to permission the infirmary and stayed to dainty his patients, and had go good known for his video statements asking the satellite to halt Israel’s attacks connected aesculapian facilities. He led a ceremonial procession for his lad Ibrahim, who was killed successful an Israeli drone onslaught astatine the infirmary gate.

Abu Safia has since been held nether Israel’s “Unlawful Combatant Law” authorities enacted successful 2002 that allows indefinite detention without ceremonial charges and strips prisoners of protections nether the Geneva Conventions. The tribunal postponed a ruling connected whether his detention would continue, with a determination expected wrong days.

The United Nations, the World Health Organization, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and galore quality rights organisations and lawyers person called for Abu Safia’s contiguous release.

In erstwhile statements, they reported that the detained paediatrician was subjected to maltreatment and mistreatment successful Israeli custody, besides suffering terrible value loss, tegument infections and aesculapian neglect.

Abu Safia’s lawsuit has drawn renewed attraction amid continued Israeli subject enactment crossed the Gaza Strip, contempt a alleged “ceasefire” statement reached successful October 2025.

On Thursday, a Palestinian antheral was killed erstwhile Israeli forces shelled an flat gathering adjacent the Nuseirat exile campy successful cardinal Gaza. Two others were wounded erstwhile an Israeli drone struck the Zeitoun neighbourhood southeast of Gaza City, and a pistillate was critically wounded by drone occurrence successful the Beit Lahiya country of bluish Gaza, according to the Palestinian Wafa quality agency.