Israel’s Supreme Court Rejects Gaza Hospital Director Hussam Abu Safia’s Appeal, Keeps Him Detained

Israel’s Supreme Court rejected an appeal by Gaza hospital director Hussam Abu Safia, keeping him detained under the Unlawful Combatants Law without any criminal charges being brought against him.

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

Agence Media Palestine

Al Jazeera reported that after the ruling on Tuesday, Abu Safia remained in solitary confinement in Nafha Prison in harsh conditions and continued to be denied necessary medical care, citing information from his lawyer Nasser Odeh.

Agence Media Palestine

Common Dreams said the court’s decision cited a 2002 law allowing the government to detain people it classifies as "unlawful combatants" without charging them with a criminal offense or prosecuting them as prisoners of war.

Common Dreams also said Abu Safia was abducted on December 28, 2024 during one of multiple Israeli sieges and assaults on Kamal Adwan Hospital, where he was director when he was taken.

In the same account, Abu Safia appeared remotely via video before the Supreme Court to demand his release, telling the court, “My detention is unjust and arbitrary, and I demand my immediate release.”

Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) said the court endorsed indefinite detention of a hospital director while he remained in solitary confinement and suffered from medical conditions not receiving appropriate treatment, with PHRI director Naji Abbas calling it a “profound moral and legal failure.”

Reuters, as quoted by The Straits Times, said the Supreme Court based its decision on “confidential materials” that were not shared with Abu Safia or his lawyer, Naji Abbas.

Al Jazeera

Le Monde said that when his new lawyer was finally able to visit him in prison in September 2025, Hussam Abu Safiya’s face lit up with a rare smile and for the first time in nine months he was allowed to change his clothes.

Le Monde also quoted lawyer Nasser Odeh saying, “Of the ten requests to visit that I submitted over the past six months, eight were canceled while I was already standing in front of the prison, and without any explanation,” describing the cancellations as happening without explanation.

France Palestine Solidarité reported that UN special rapporteurs Tlaleng Mofokeng and Ben Saul said they had received information that Abu Safiya’s health status remains critical and that he had been “systematically denied medical examinations and essential treatments.”

The Palestinian Centre for Prisoners Advocacy condemned the decision to approve continuation of Abu Safia’s detention under the so-called ‘Unlawful Combatants Law’ without presenting any charges against him or filing an indictment.

“Israel's Supreme Court rejected on Tuesday a request to release Palestinian doctor Husam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Gaza Strip, who has been detained by Israel since late 2024 without formal charges”

Al-Jazeera Net

Al Jazeera said the Centre urged “international human rights institutions, foremost among them the International Committee of the Red Cross, the World Health Organisation, and the United Nations Special Rapporteurs, to urgently intervene and pressure the Israeli authorities to end his unlawful detention.”

Il Sole 24 ORE reported that the Israeli Supreme Court refused to order Abu Safiya’s release and based its decision on “confidential materials” which were not shared with Abu Safiya or with his lawyer, Naji Abbas.

Amnesty International said Abu Safiya remains arbitrarily detained by Israeli authorities since his arrest on December 27, 2024 and called for his immediate and unconditional release.

France Palestine Solidarité added that the UN experts warned Abu Safiya had been deprived of essential care to such an extent that “his life, health and well-being have been seriously endangered,” tying the case to broader concerns about the destruction of Gaza’s health system and the targeting of health professionals.