politics
Gaza Surgeon Held Without Charge in Israeli Detention for Nearly 21 Months
Dr. Hassan Khalil Almukayed, a vascular surgeon, remains in Israeli custody since his October 2024 arrest at Kamal Adwan Hospital. He is one of at least 15 Palestinian doctors from Gaza held under an Israeli law allowing indefinite detention without trial.
Jul 15, 2:55 AM·1m read1 source
Al JazeeraAudio version
Tap play to generate a narrated version.
Developing·Limited corroboration so far. This page will refresh as more sources emerge.
Dr. Hassan Khalil Almukayed, a vascular surgeon at Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, has spent nearly 21 months in Israeli detention without charge. Israeli forces detained him on October 25, 2024, during a raid on the hospital where he and other staff had refused orders to evacuate newborn infants under their care.
Al Jazeera reported that soldiers directed families out of the facility and onto roads south while assuring doctors they would face no harm or arrest if they returned to their departments. Nadia Almukayed, the surgeon’s wife, maintained phone contact with her husband until midnight the following night, after which communication ceased.
Naji Abbas of Physicians for Human Rights-Israel confirmed the arrest date and noted that Almukayed and his brother Mahmoud were held under Israel’s Unlawful Combatants Law.
Almukayed was first held at Sde Teiman detention camp for seven months before transfer to Ktziot prison in June 2025. His brother Mahmoud was released in an October 2025 prisoner swap, but Hassan remained detained. The father of the two men, Khalil Almukayed, was briefly held at the hospital, had his medicine confiscated, and received a punctured water bottle before release; he died months later of grief, according to family accounts.
Al Jazeera reported that more than 350 healthcare workers were detained during the conflict, with approximately 55 still held, including 15 senior doctors. Almukayed has diabetes and high blood pressure and has been periodically deprived of medicine while also left untreated for scabies for weeks. Released prisoners told his wife he has lost 40 kilograms.
Hussam Abu Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, has been held without charge for more than 18 months. The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory called for his immediate release last week. Rights groups and his lawyer have reported credible evidence of severe abuse and torture.
