Aid group seeks release of Palestinian medical workers held by Israel
Doctors Without Borders says detained Palestinian health workers must be freed and given medical care and humane conditions while held.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
3 min read
Doctors Without Borders has demanded that Israel release Palestinian healthcare workers it says are being held arbitrarily, including doctors detained during the war in Gaza. The call adds to pressure from medical rights groups and United Nations bodies over the treatment of Palestinian medical staff in Israeli custody.
The group, known by its French initials MSF, said Monday that it was outraged by the detention conditions faced by healthcare workers and said many were being held without valid cause. MSF said detained medical personnel should be freed immediately and unconditionally.
MSF singled out Dr Hussam Abu Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. The organisation said Abu Safia has been kept in solitary confinement and has reportedly faced torture since Israeli forces detained him more than a year and a half ago.
MSF said his case reflects a wider pattern of Israeli authorities detaining and targeting medical workers across Palestine. The group also called for the release of Dr Mohammed Obeid, an orthopaedic surgeon it said has been imprisoned for more than 600 days after being arrested while working at Kamal Adwan Hospital.
Rights groups cite dozens still held
Physicians for Human Rights Israel says more than 50 healthcare workers, including 15 doctors, are currently being held by Israel in inhumane conditions. The group has asked Israel’s Supreme Court to order their release.
Healthcare Workers Watch reported in April that Israeli forces had unlawfully detained 446 Palestinian healthcare workers since the war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023. The group said six healthcare workers have been killed in detention and that their bodies remain held by Israel.
MSF said all arbitrarily detained medical workers should be given adequate medical care and dignified conditions while they remain in custody. It also criticised world leaders for what it called a failure to condemn Israel’s conduct in Palestine, saying silence had become complicity.
UN bodies urged Abu Safia’s release
Earlier this month, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention called for Israel to release Abu Safia and other medical personnel they described as arbitrarily detained.
Abu Safia’s lawyer, Nasser Odeh, warned that the doctor’s health was at risk and said he showed signs of regular torture. Israel is holding Abu Safia without trial after classifying him as an “unlawful combatant,” according to Odeh’s account cited in the reports.
Before his detention, Abu Safia had drawn attention to the impact of Israel’s war on Gaza’s healthcare system. His hospital, Kamal Adwan, was one of the main medical facilities serving northern Gaza.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.