Jerusalem: Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, has been moved from a detention centre in the Negev, Israel, to solitary confinement in Nafha prison.
Abu Safiya’s lawyer, Nasser Awda, told Al Jazeera that the move was decided after the doctor’s defence team questioned the continued detention. The transfer aims to cut the Palestinian doctor off from the outside world, other prisoners, and his lawyers, Awda said.
Allegations of torture, humiliating treatment under custody
Abu Safiya has been tortured, enduring threats and humiliating treatment under Israeli custody, with the Israeli prison authorities and intelligence personnel pressuring him to remain silent about the prison’s conditions, the lawyer added.
According to Awda, prison officers have repeatedly stopped defence lawyers from seeing Abu Safiya, even blocking general visits without providing a legal reason. He said that Israeli authorities are subjecting Abu Safiya to abuse during his detention, as he has been repeatedly denied medical treatment despite ongoing health concerns. The authorities have also refrained from giving any information about his current condition, Awda said.
“No accurate information confirming his health and psychological condition is currently available,” Awda was quoted by Al Jazeera.
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Raid on Abu Safiya’s hospital in 2024
Israeli forces arrested Abu Safiya on December 27, 2024, during a raid on the Kamal Adwan Hospital. His prolonged incarceration has been extended since. In October 2025, an order issued the extension of his detention to an additional six months.
The authorities have held him under the “Unlawful Combatant Law,” which allows for prolonged detention without providing formal evidence or criminal charges.
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His lawyer claimed there has been no presentation of evidence against Abu Safiya since the arrest in 2024. In February 2025, the doctor was seen in public for the first time since his detention during a broadcast by Israeli media.
The footage had triggered outrage among Palestinian rights groups and human rights advocates who raised concerns regarding the humiliating treatment and psychological abuse faced by Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.
Appeal filed in the Supreme Court for an immediate release
Abu Safiya’s lawyer Awda confirmed that his team has moved the Supreme Court, seeking his immediate release.
The appeal categorised his detention as arbitrary and as one that violated both Israeli and international law, including the Geneva Conventions, which provide protections to medical professionals.
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