United Nations special rapporteurs Tlaleng Mofokeng and Ben Saul issued a statement on Tuesday, urging Israel to immediately release Dr Hussam Abu Safia, a Palestinian physician detained from Gaza. The experts warned that they had received reports indicating the doctor has been subjected to “severe torture” and other abuses in Israeli detention, with his health condition “remaining dire” due to systematic denial of critical medical examination and treatment.
Dr Abu Safia, the former director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, was detained by Israeli forces in December 2024 amid Israel’s military operations in the coastal enclave. He was arrested after refusing to evacuate the hospital, which was the last functioning health facility in Gaza’s north during Israeli attacks. Like numerous other detainees from the Gaza Strip, Israel has held Abu Safia without charge or trial, a practice that has drawn widespread condemnation from human rights groups.
In their statement, the UN experts asserted that Abu Safia “has suffered an arbitrary deprivation of liberty, violation of his human rights, including the right of every human being to be free from torture and ill treatment, and his right to health is being eroded.” They called on the international community, particularly countries “with influence on Israel,” to take action “to ensure prevention, recourse and justice” in this case.
According to World Health Organization (WHO) figures from last month, Gaza’s healthcare network has been decimated by Israel’s war on the enclave, with over 930 attacks on the health sector recorded since October 2023. The WHO reported that all 36 hospitals in the Strip have sustained damage from Israeli attacks, with only half partially functional. Humanitarian group Medical Aid for Palestinians stated that at least 1,722 medical workers were killed between October 2023 and October 2025 – an average of more than two per day.
Amnesty International commented that Abu Safia’s arrest and detention are “a reflection of Israel’s systematic targeting of Palestinian health workers and the decimation of the healthcare system in Gaza in order to inflict conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians.” The UN experts concluded by urging Israel to “release Dr Abu Safiya and all health care workers, and ensure they have access to appropriate medical care.”
Source: www.aljazeera.com