Gaza’s Dr Hussam Abu Safiya tortured in Israeli detention

The Palestinian Ministry of Health has called for the immediate release of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza, along with all detained medical personnel held in Israeli custody.

In an urgent appeal, the ministry urged international health and humanitarian organisations, as well as human rights institutions, to intervene and secure the release of Palestinian medics.

It highlighted the harsh conditions suffered by Abu Safiya and his colleagues in Israeli detention.

According to Wafa news agency, a lawyer from the Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights visited him at Ofer Prison yesterday and reported that detainees are subjected to brutal and repressive treatment.

“During the visit, Dr. Abu Safiya detailed the various forms of torture and abuse to which he has been subjected both during his unlawful arrest and throughout his arbitrary detention by Israeli forces and authorities,” Al-Mezan said in a statement.

Highlighting what Abu Safiya was subjected to, his son, Ilyas, said: “My father was subjected to severe mistreatment and torture by the army in the early days of his arrest and was held in solitary confinement for 24 days. After that, he was transferred to Ofer Prison, Room 24, Section 2.”

Abu Safiya said that he has lost approximately 15 kilogrammes, suffers from an enlarged heart muscle and has been denied access to a specialist doctor or proper medical care despite repeated requests to the Israeli prison administration. His son added that he suffers from chronic high blood pressure and is only receiving minimal treatment.

“He is only provided with one meal a day, which is insufficient and of very poor quality,” Ilyas added.

The statement further revealed that upon his initial detention and transfer from Gaza, Abu Safiay was forced to strip, had his hands tied, and he was made to sit on sharp pebbles for nearly five hours.

He also suffered electric shocks and severe beatings to the chest while in Israeli custody, according to his testimony. He spent 25 days in detention at Ofer Prison, including ten days of continuous interrogation, during which he fainted due to suffocation.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health strongly condemned these repeated attacks on medical personnel, calling them grave violations of international law and the protective measures outlined in the Second Protocol of the Fourth Geneva Convention. It urged the international community to intervene immediately to secure the release of detained Palestinian healthcare workers.

Ilyas emphasised that there are no formal charges against Abu Safiya and that all accusations have been dismissed due to a lack of evidence. He expressed hope that his father could be released soon, calling for global pressure to ensure the freedom of all detained healthcare workers.

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