Palestinian Doctor Hussam Abu Safiya Remains Detained, Reports of Torture Intensify

Hussam Abu Safiya, a Palestinian physician who led the Kamal Adwan hospital, was captured by Israeli forces on 27 December 2024 after intense bombardment of the facility. More than 560 days later he remains imprisoned without charge. Human‑rights and medical organisations, including Physicians for Human Rights Israel, report that Abu Safiya is being subjected to systematic torture. His lawyer described him as “visibly emaciated” and said the doctor showed severe injuries to his face, neck and head, adding that Abu Safiya told him, “They hit me every day with sticks and hammers.”

The case is part of a broader pattern: Israel is reported to be holding at least 55 Palestinian health‑care workers, including 14 doctors, without trial. International bodies such as the United Nations and Amnesty International have condemned the alleged mistreatment, describing Israeli prisons as a “network of torture fields” for Palestinian detainees. Media outlets including CNN and The New York Times have published investigations into the alleged abuse in Israeli detention facilities.