Severe Injuries and Life-Threatening Condition of Detained Gaza Doctor
Hussam Abu Safiya, a prominent doctor from Gaza, has become almost unrecognisable due to severe injuries sustained during his detention in Israel, according to his lawyer. After being held for 18 months without charge or trial, Abu Safiya faces a “tangible danger to his life.”
His lawyer, Nasser Odeh, met with Abu Safiya on 2 July following his transfer to Israel’s Rakefet prison in late June. Odeh reported that Abu Safiya had difficulty breathing and speaking continuously, was so weak he struggled to sit upright, and appeared repeatedly on the verge of losing consciousness.
Abu Safiya was in northern Gaza until his detention and expressed fear for his life. Odeh quoted him saying,
“They brought me here to kill me. I don’t see myself surviving. This is the end.”
This statement was made in a joint release with Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), which, along with other organisations, is advocating for his immediate release.
Context of Detention and Broader Healthcare Impact
Abu Safiya’s detention is part of a wider pattern of restrictions and attacks on healthcare in occupied Palestine, according to Milena Ansari, PHRI’s director for the region. On the same day as Abu Safiya’s meeting with his lawyer, a four-month-old Palestinian infant, Ahmad Maarouf Zaid, died after Israeli forces prevented his family from crossing a checkpoint to reach an ambulance, delaying critical medical treatment.
The family was forced to transport the severely ill baby themselves over unpaved, mountainous back roads to Ramallah, resulting in a delay of over an hour before reaching hospital care.
Ansari stated,
“The reports of a newborn dying after delays at a checkpoint, the arrest of a physician providing medical care, and the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza should not be understood as isolated incidents. They reflect a broader pattern in which the conditions necessary to realise Palestinians’ right to health are being systematically undermined.”
Abu Safiya’s Role and Conditions of Detention
Before his detention, Abu Safiya was a leading figure among health workers in Gaza during the ongoing conflict. He is currently held indefinitely, along with thousands of other Palestinians, in prisons that Israeli rights groups describe as overcrowded and harsh.
In late May, Abu Safiya was transferred from Ketziot prison to the Ganot prison complex, where he reportedly suffered an assault by guards using hammers and batons shortly after appearing via video link at a supreme court appeal hearing challenging his detention. Following this, he was moved to the Rakefet facility on 24 June, where his condition deteriorated severely and dangerously.
Odeh remarked,
“I have visited Dr Abu Safiya several times since his detention, but the individual I encountered during this latest visit was not the same person I had previously met. His physical and psychological state, the severe injuries visible on his body, and his personal testimony leave no room for doubt: his life is in immediate danger.”
During the meeting, Abu Safiya appeared frightened, distressed, and reluctant to speak freely but informed his lawyer that he endured daily beatings in Rakefet prison and had lost consciousness multiple times as a result.
Conditions at Rakefet Prison and Official Responses
Rakefet prison, where detainees reportedly never see daylight, was originally constructed in the 1980s to hold senior organised crime figures but was closed due to inhumane conditions. It was reopened under orders from the far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Other Palestinians detained there have reported symptoms such as breathlessness and choking caused by the unventilated, overcrowded cells, even without the severe injuries sustained by Abu Safiya.
An Israeli prison service spokesperson denied the allegations made by Odeh, describing them as “false and entirely without factual basis,” but declined to comment on Abu Safiya’s health, citing privacy concerns.
Death of Infant Ahmad Maarouf Zaid Amid Checkpoint Delays
The death of four-month-old Ahmad Maarouf Zaid from Deir Ammar refugee camp was announced on Sunday evening. The baby, born after years of IVF treatment and previously healthy, developed a high fever on Sunday morning. The family called emergency services, and medics dispatched an ambulance to the camp’s Ein Ayoub gate.
Since 7 October 2023, Israel has regularly barred vehicles, including ambulances, from passing through Ein Ayoub, the main route to Ramallah and its hospitals. Although residents can usually cross on foot, Ahmad’s parents were stopped by four Israeli soldiers as they approached, despite their urgent pleas. The soldiers had also fired teargas at people in the area. A video of the incident was recorded.
Ahmad’s uncle, Arafat Ahmad Zaid, said,
“This baby needed oxygen. If he had been allowed to reach an ambulance and get to the hospital, his life could have been saved.”
The Israeli military spokesperson denied blocking the family from crossing to seek medical aid. The family described the circumstances of Ahmad’s death as compounding their grief.
Arafat Ahmad Zaid added,
“There are no words to describe the pain of watching your own child die in your arms while knowing there is nothing you can do to save him. That is the ultimate suffering. That is the ultimate humiliation.”
