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Israeli Court Rejects Release Appeal for Palestinian Doctor Held Without Charges
Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, remains in Israeli detention more than 500 days after his December 2024 arrest. No formal charges have been filed and no trial has occurred.
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Israel's Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected an appeal to release Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. The doctor has been held in Israel since his arrest on December 27, 2024. The statement added that hundreds of Hamas and Islamic Jihad members were hiding inside the hospital under his management.
Abu Safiya's family and advocates have denied that he is a member of Hamas or engaged in terrorist activities. Gaza's Ministry of Health and Hamas have also rejected the allegations.
The Israel Prison Service called reports of abuse, starvation, or denial of medical treatment false. Physicians for Human Rights Israel reported that at least 15 Palestinian healthcare workers, including Abu Safiya, are currently held in Israel. Abu Safiya was first held at Sde Teiman detention center, then transferred to Ofer Prison, Nafha Prison, Ktzi'ot Prison, and most recently Ramon Prison, where he was placed in solitary confinement.
Safiya was arrested while serving as director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, which the World Health Organization identified in March 2024 as the only pediatrics hospital remaining in northern Gaza. His son, Elyas Abu Safiya, told ABC News that the doctor had documented conditions at the facility on social media.
The family reported that Abu Safiya's 15-year-old son was killed in an Israeli drone strike at the hospital entrance in October 2024, and that Abu Safiya himself was injured in a November 2024 strike on the medical compound.
