Family of Gaza hospital chief detained by Israel 'shocked' over his deteriorating health condition

It has been thomas more than 18 months since Hussam Abu Safiya's fellowship endure saw the Gaza dr..

The 52‑ twelvemonth‑old pediatrician and director of Kamal Adwan Hospital has been detained without charge and held in Israeli custody since December 2024, triggering outcry from human rights organizations, colleagues and family who are afraid he could die in custody.

In June, Abu Safiya attended a Supreme Court hearing in Jerusalem via video link, appearing noticeably more frail, and thinner in the face and around his abdomen.

"This photo was a shock to the entire family. We were extremely shocked by it. We didn't expect my brother to be in this condition," said Samahir Abu Safiya, Hussam's sister.

"[It] shook us."

Abu Safiya is among at least 14 doctors from Gaza who have been detained in Israel without charge or trial for more than a year, according to Physicians for Human Rights Israel. United Nations experts and Amnesty International have called on Israel to immediately release Abu Safiya and all health-care workers arbitrarily detained.

During a visit to Abu Safiya on July 2, his lawyer Nasser Odeh said that he has been subjected to daily beatings at the underground detention facility Rakevet, beneath the Ayalon prison complex, in central Israel.

Odeh said he saw fresh bruises and torture marks on Abu Safiya's head and across his body, leaving him barely recognizable. Abu Safiya arrived at their meeting with his hands and feet shackled, Odeh said, adding that he appeared weak and on the verge of losing consciousness.

Abu Safiya told him: "This is the last time you’ll see me … they brought me here to kill me."

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On Wednesday, an IPS spokesperson told Reuters: "The allegations and characterizations described are false, outrageous and entirely without factual basis."

The spokesperson did not name Abu Safiya, but the IPS has previously rejected allegations that he and other doctors have been mistreated in prison.

Abu Safiya's son Elias said he fears that his father could die in Israeli custody after suffering a head injury.

“[My father] is currently living through critical moments between life and death," he said in a statement to Amnesty International. "[His] health and situation are becoming more critical day by day."

Abu Safiya led Kamal Adwan Hospital through an 85-day siege of the facility during an Israeli offensive in northern Gaza. He and dozens of others, including patients and hospital staff, were taken prisoner after Israeli troops raided the hospital on Dec. 27, 2024.

Last month, Israel's Supreme Court rejected an appeal to release him. It based its decision on "confidential materials" under a law for so-called unlawful combatants, which also allows detention for indefinitely renewable periods.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has accused Abu Safiya of being a member of the Palestinian militant group Hamas. It has not provided any evidence. Gaza's Health Ministry and Hamas denied the allegation.

Detained Gaza doctor in 'very difficult' situation: sister

His sister also denied the accusation.

"They took him from his work while he was wearing his white coat. They didn't take him from a battlefield," Samahir Abu Safiya said.

"We are extremely worried about him," she said, noting that the family relies on his lawyer for information on his condition, though visits are not always granted at the detention facility.

Tirza Leibowitz, the deputy director of Physicians for Human Rights Israel, said many Palestinian health-care workers and other detainees are held under the unlawful combatants law.

Switzerland-based MENA Rights Group said Abu Safiya has faced repeated solitary confinement, lengthy interrogations and beatings with batons and electric shock sticks.

On Wednesday, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem expressed concern over reports of abuse against Abu Safiya while under Israeli custody, urging for his immediate release.

"The actions of the Israeli Prison Service guards towards Palestinian detainees raise grave concerns of violations of international law that likely amount to international crimes. Dr. Abu Safiya’s medical condition is the direct result of these actions," the UN inquiry said.

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Amnesty International said Abu Safiya's case should serve as an "urgent wake-up call" to the international community, calling for his immediate release.

Despite widespread calls for his release, Abu Safiya was not among the hundreds of Palestinian detainees freed in October 2025 in exchange for hostages held by Hamas.

Dr. Mohammed Abu Salmiya, head of Al-Shifa Hospital, was among Gaza's medical staff who were detained by Israel since November 2023. Abu Salmiya, who was similarly accused by Israel of being involved with Hamas, was released after more than seven months, claiming his incarceration was political and that he was tortured while in custody.

Abu Salmiya said he was shocked to see Abu Safiya's thin appearance in the circulated photo.

"I, myself, appeared before that same court three times. No charges were ever presented against me, just as no charges have been brought against [Abu Safiya]," he said.

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In September 2025, the UN said that the Israeli authorities had committed genocide by targeting the health-care system and medical professionals in Gaza since October 2023, an accusation that Israel described as scandalous.

Despite a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in October 2025, Israeli strikes have continued in Gaza, with more than 1,100 Palestinians killed since then, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

Senior Writer

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