Medical Aid for Palestinians Warns Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya Faces Imminent Risk of Death in Israeli Custody

Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) has called for the immediate release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, stating that his life is in “imminent danger” while he remains in Israeli custody.

The UK‑based charity issued the appeal after lawyer Nasser Odeh visited Dr. Abu Safiya on 2 July 2026 at the Rakefet facility in Nitzan Prison. Odeh reported that the doctor showed severe physical deterioration—visible injuries, extreme weakness, breathing difficulties, and psychological distress—often appearing near loss of consciousness and expressing fear that he might not survive detention.

Dr. Abu Safiya has been held by Israeli authorities since 27 December 2024 without charge or trial under the Unlawful Combatants Law, a statute Israel uses to detain Palestinians from Gaza for extended periods without ordinary criminal due process or legal safeguards. His most recent detention order was upheld in June 2026 despite the absence of any public evidence against him.

MAP’s CEO, Steve Cutts, warned that the doctor is being “beaten to the point of collapse” and urged the UK government to intervene before it is too late.

“He has not been charged with any crime; he simply treated patients,” Cutts said. “In the view of an occupying power that has killed more than 1,700 healthcare workers and devastated Gaza’s health system during 1,000 days of genocide, that appears to be a capital offence.”

“If Dr. Abu Safiya dies in that cell, it will be murder, and everyone who had the power to prevent it but did nothing will be complicit. The UK government possesses the means to act—it must use them now, before it is too late,” Cutts added.

READ: Israel places detained Gaza hospital director Dr Hussam Abu Safiya in solitary confinement

Israeli forces detained Dr. Abu Safiya after raiding Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza, in December 2024. The hospital had been under siege yet continued to operate despite severe shortages of fuel, medicine, and staff. Israeli courts later extended his detention without filing charges, even as rights groups warned of harsh prison conditions, denial of medical care, and reported abuse.

The latest warning about his condition follows earlier reports that he had been placed in solitary confinement and deprived of necessary medical treatment. His lawyer said he remains held under harsh conditions, while rights groups noted severe weight loss, skin infections, and medical neglect.

MAP said Dr. Abu Safiya’s case exemplifies a broader, well‑documented pattern in which Palestinian detainees in Israeli custody face systematic ill‑treatment and torture, including severe beatings, stress positions, and denial of medical care.

In September 2025, the UN Human Rights Office reported that it had documented or received credible evidence of Israeli authorities subjecting Palestinian detainees to repeated beatings, waterboarding, stress positions, sexual violence, starvation, denial of hygiene, and denial of medical care. The office stated that these practices may constitute war crimes and, in some circumstances, crimes against humanity.

Dr. Abu Safiya is among dozens of Palestinian healthcare workers arbitrarily detained by Israeli authorities. MAP noted that since October 2023, at least 612 healthcare workers have been detained across Gaza and the West Bank, with at least five reported deaths while in detention.

The detention and alleged torture of medical personnel have drawn repeated condemnation from UN experts, human rights organisations, and medical groups. UN experts previously called for Dr. Abu Safiya’s immediate release, saying he had been subjected to torture and other cruel and degrading treatment, and warned that his health condition was “dire”.

READ: Israeli court extends detention of Gaza hospital director Abu Safiya ‘without charges’

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