Israeli Troops Abduct Gaza Doctor Hussam Abu Safiya, Detention Extended Without Charges

Israeli troops abducted Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya on December 27, 2024 after storming Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza and forcing his evacuation, and human rights organizations say he remains held by Israel without charges under its so-called 'Law on Illegal Combatants.'

“Human rights organizations are calling for the release of Abu Safiya, who is being held by Israel without charges and subjected to torture”

Agence Media Palestine

Agence Media Palestine says a Beersheba Israeli court extended Abu Safiya's detention by six months in March 2025 and again in October 2025, keeping him in prison without any charges ever being brought against him.

Agence Media Palestine

The same source says Abu Safiya has been subjected to torture and degrading treatment, and that lawyer Ghaid Ghanem Qassem revealed in July that he lost more than a third of his body weight in detention at Ofer Prison and that repeated requests for medical care had been denied.

In a separate account, Anadolu Ajansı reports that Abu Safiya told Israel’s Supreme Court, via video link from his prison cell, “My detention is unjust and arbitrary, and I demand my immediate release,” and said he is “a pediatrician who provides medical services and care to patients, the wounded and vulnerable people in the Gaza Strip.”

Multiple outlets describe Abu Safiya’s detention conditions worsening after legal proceedings, with Physicians for Human Rights Israel saying he was transferred from Ketziot prison to Ramon prison within Israel’s Ganot prison complex and held alone in a cramped isolation cell.

Al Jazeera reports that the first image in months showed Abu Safiya on a video call during his court hearing in Israeli court, and that his son recounted the moment his family witnessed the images for the first time.

Al Jazeera

In a June 10, 2026 Anadolu Ajansı update, defense lawyer Nasser Abu Odeh quoted Abu Safiya telling the court, “I am a pediatrician who provides medical services and care to patients, the wounded and vulnerable people in the Gaza Strip,” while the lawyer said the court postponed a ruling on whether his detention would continue.

The New Arab says Abu Safiya’s son Elias warned he could die in custody and quoted him saying, “Our greatest fear is that we will lose him while he is alone behind bars.”

UN experts and rights groups are urging Israel to release Abu Safiya and health professionals, with France Palestine Solidarité reporting that UN special rapporteurs Tlaleng Mofokeng and Ben Saul said they had received information indicating his health condition “remains critical.”

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Al Jazeera

France Palestine Solidarité quotes the UN experts warning that Abu Safiya “has systematically been denied medical examinations and essential treatments,” and says they urged countries with influence over Israel to take measures to ensure prevention, remedies and justice.

The same outlet links the case to broader attacks on healthcare, saying the World Health Organization recorded more than 930 attacks on the health sector since October 2023 and that all 36 hospitals in the Gaza Strip have sustained damage due to Israeli attacks, with only half partially operational.

In parallel, i24NEWS says Physicians for Human Rights Israel reported that there are currently fourteen Palestinian doctors from Gaza detained in Israel without charges filed against them, and it says legal proceedings are ongoing after PHRI filed a case before the Israeli Supreme Court seeking their release.