Utolsó frissítés: 2026.07.15. — Szerző: Anti-Propaganda News Blog
Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, who lives in Gaza, was kidnapped by the Israeli army in December 2024.
More than 800 doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals have signed an open letter to the UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, calling for urgent intervention to secure the release of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, whose life is in danger after spending more than 550 days in Israeli custody. in captivity.
Abu Safiya, a Palestinian pediatrician and director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza, who became internationally known during the Israeli genocide for his efforts to help victims, has been detained without charge or trial since December 27, 2024.
The letter, coordinated by Amnesty International UK and the campaign group Health Workers 4 Palestine, reads: „We urge you to publicly and unequivocally demand his immediate release and to use all economic, political and diplomatic tools at your disposal to achieve this.”
The letter refers to a visit by a lawyer from Physicians for Human Rights in Israel (PHRI) on July 2. The lawyer reported that Dr. Abu Safiya’s head and body showed extensive bruising and signs of torture; the doctor was emaciated and barely recognizable. PHRI added that the man had been beaten daily since his transfer to the Rakevet facility, an underground section of the Ayalon prison complex in Ramla, Israel, and had been held in solitary confinement since last month. Despite his chronic illnesses, he was routinely denied medical treatment.
Abu Safiya reportedly told his lawyer: „This is the last time you will see me… they brought me here to kill me.”
Kerry Moscogiuri, CEO of Amnesty International UK, said: „Dr Hussam Abu Safiya is being tortured to death by Israeli forces – for the crime of refusing to leave his patients alone. The British government must act now, publicly and decisively, to secure his release before it is too late.”
„"Not a unique case"”
Amira Nimerawi, CEO of Health Workers 4 Palestine, accused the British government of letting the doctor „die slowly in an Israeli prison cell due to a lack of political will.” She added: „This is not an accident. This is the result of a detention system designed to break.”
Abu Safiya refused several Israeli orders to leave Kamal Adwan Hospital, the last functioning hospital in northern Gaza. Israeli forces eventually stormed the building, detaining 44 staff members and killing Abu Safiya's son, Ibrahim, in a drone strike.
The signatories warn that the doctor’s detention and abuse is „not an isolated incident”; they note that since October 2023, more than 400 other health workers in Gaza have been arbitrarily detained by Israeli forces. Israel has killed more than 1,700 health workers and damaged or destroyed hospitals since the start of the genocide. According to UN reports, this „pattern” has led to the complete collapse of Gaza’s health system.
The letter points out that health workers and facilities are protected under international law and that targeted attacks are „evidence of genocidal intent.” The health workers called on the British government to support investigations by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) into the arbitrary detention and killing of all Palestinian health workers.
Professor Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah, an expert in conflict medicine, Middle East Eyetold the BBC: „The continued detention of Dr. Abu Safiya shows that the destruction of Gaza’s health system was never an incidental part of the war – it was central to the genocidal campaign then, and it remains so today.”
International pressure on Israel
Dr Omar Abdel Mannan, a paediatrician who has worked for the NHS for 15 years, added: „The Foreign Secretary has the power to act – he should publicly demand the immediate release of Dr Abu Safiya and back it up with sanctions. Every day he doesn’t do so, the doctor’s life hangs in the balance.”
There have been growing calls from the international community for the doctor's release. Several demonstrations have been held in the UK, with human rights activists and politicians demanding action from the government. UN experts have also called for the doctor's release, saying he is being held illegally under Israel's "unlawful combatants" law.
Abu Safiya’s appeal, rejected on June 16, extended his detention without charge until at least October 2026. His son, Elias, warned: „My father is living in critical moments between life and death. The silence of the world today could mean the loss of an innocent human life.”
The British Foreign Office is Middle East Eye did not respond to his request.
