Israeli military court rubberstamps another 6-month extension of Dr. Abu Safiya’s detention

An Israeli military court has extended the detention without charge of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya for another six months, despite his name having previously appeared among those discussed for release under a recent ceasefire deal. 

The Israeli occupation’s Be’er Sheva Court held a session on Thursday morning to extend the captivity of Abu Safiya, 52, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza.

He appeared via video conference as the court renewed his 'detention' for six additional months under the so-called “Unlawful Combatant Law.”

Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, a non-partisan, non-governmental human rights organization based in Gaza, strongly condemned the court’s decision, describing it as a flagrant violation of international law and the protections guaranteed to medical workers in wartime.

The rights organization stated that Dr. Abu Safiya’s continued abduction without charge or fair trial amounts to hostage-taking by the Israeli occupation, and reflects the ongoing policy of targeting Gaza’s healthcare sector.

It also called for his immediate release, along with all detained Palestinian healthcare workers, and urged the international community to intervene to stop Israel’s escalating violations against Palestinian prisoners and medical professionals.

Meanwhile,  Abu Safiya’s family expressed deep concern over his continued detention and reaffirmed full trust in the legal team and all humanitarian efforts working toward his freedom.

The family also calls on relevant institutions, human rights organizations, and the negotiating parties to actively address his case and work toward his immediate release.

Ramy Abdu is Assistant Professor of Law and Finance, Founder and the Chairman of the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, said in a social media post that Abu Safiya was held as a bargaining chip, not a prisoner of law but of politics.

Israel has refused to release two prominent Palestinian doctors — including the pediatrician Abu Safiya — as part of a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement with the Hamas resistance movement.

A Hamas official recently said that “the occupation refused to release Abu Safiya,” who was kidnapped during an Israeli raid that closed the last major functioning health facility in northern Gaza in December 2024.

Dr. Marwan al-Hams, director of field hospitals in Gaza, was also excluded from release under the truce deal, the official said.

According to Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), Abu Safiya has faced starvation, physical abuse, and invasive searches while in detention. The group said he has not been charged, interrogated, or brought before a judge since March.

The group condemned the Palestinian doctor's continued detention, saying it exemplifies “the systemic targeting of medical professionals and health institutions in Gaza.”

Abu Safiya’s attorney, Ghaid Qasem, told Palestinian media that the doctor was being “abandoned to disease and hunger” in Israel’s detention center, Sde Teiman, which is known for brutality and torture.

Qasem warned at the time that Abu Safiya’s condition was rapidly deteriorating under deliberate neglect. She said that her client suffers from severe chest pain, irregular heartbeat, and high blood pressure, but has never been examined by a cardiologist since his arrest.

Last week, the regime and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a plan to bring a ceasefire to Gaza, release all Israeli captives remaining in the coastal sliver in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the entire Palestinian territory.

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The exclusion of the doctors from the ceasefire deal has drawn outrage from Palestinian officials and human rights organizations, who condemn Israel for weaponizing medical personnel in its war against Gaza’s health sector.

Observers say the exclusion of key Palestinian prisoners — particularly doctors vital to Gaza’s collapsing healthcare system — combined with ongoing restrictions and violence, reflects Israel’s disregard for Palestinian life and undermines efforts toward lasting peace.

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