URGENT ACTION: RELEASE PALESTINIAN PEDIATRICIAN AND HOSPITAL DIRECTOR

Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya is a pediatrician and the director of the Kamal Adwan hospital in Gaza. In late December, the Israeli military raided his hospital and arbitrarily detained him, along with other medical staff and patients.

Dr. Abu Safiya has been one of the most prominent voices of Gaza’s decimated healthcare sector. He was detained while caring for his patients and carrying out his medical duties.

We've just received disturbing news from his legal team that he has been aggressively assaulted by Israeli prison officers and we are very concerned for his safety at this time.

Take urgent action now: tell Israeli authorities to immediately release him.

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Yifat

Tomer-Yerushalmi

Military Advocate General Brig

Dear Brig. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi,

I am writing to you to demand the immediate release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, a pediatrician and the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Occupied Gaza Strip, who was arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared by Israeli forces on December 27, 2024, along with other hospital staff and patients, following a deadly raid on the hospital which put it out of service.

Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, 51, has for months acted as one of the most prominent voices of Gaza’s decimated healthcare sector, providing comprehensive and reliable information about the healthcare situation in the North Gaza governorate, particularly since Israeli forces laid a near-total siege to the area. He continued to bear witness and treat children, despite the killing of his son last year.

Testimonies collected by Amnesty International and other human rights groups reveal a dreadful reality inside Israeli prisons and detention centers, where Palestinian detainees – including health workers – face systematic torture and other ill-treatment, and are denied their right to a fair trial and due process, along with access to adequate food and medical care. In light of this, and the ongoing failure of Israeli authorities to grant independent monitors access to detention centres, I am extremely concerned for the life and wellbeing of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya.

By arresting him arbitrarily, Israeli forces committed serious violations of international law.

I urge you to secure the release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya and all other Palestinians, including health workers, who are arbitrarily detained by Israeli authorities. He must be granted access to adequate medical care while in detention.

Sincerely,

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