Palestinian doctor Hossam Abu Safiya, Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, remains confined in one of the Israeli occupation’s dark prison cells, more than 407 days after his detention.

He carried no weapon and took part in no fighting. Instead, he spent his days among hospital beds, treating children and women under Israeli bombardment—before becoming a patient himself, deprived of the most basic right to medical care.

“A Body Collapsing… and the Right to Life Confiscated”

Palestinian journalists report that Dr. Abu Safiya’s weight has dropped to around 60 kilograms, reflecting a severe deterioration in his health that now threatens his life.

He also suffers from a heart condition that worsens day by day without any medical follow-up, amid a complete denial of essential healthcare.

His suffering is not limited to illness. He is reportedly denied regular access to showers and exposure to sunlight, in harsh detention conditions that turn days into a long, silent isolation.

“A Family Waiting… and a City That Does Not Forget”

Outside the cell, his wife waits for his return, while his children ask about him every day.

As for Gaza—where he was known as a doctor during its harshest moments—it still remembers him as one of those who bore the burden of saving lives amid the total collapse of the health system.

Yet this accumulated human suffering is met with troubling international silence, despite the clear and present danger to his life.

“When a Doctor Becomes a Prisoner”

The story of Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya is not an isolated case; it is a stark example of a bitter reality imposed by the Israeli entity, in which healthcare workers are deliberately targeted.

When a doctor is detained for fulfilling his humanitarian duty, wounds speak louder than words, and silence itself becomes a partner in suffering.

“Debunking Allegations and Distorting Context”

Alongside his detention, the doctor’s reputation has been subjected to an Israeli media smear campaign based on the distortion of his professional context.

The administrative ranks he once held within what is known as “medical services” are organizational and administrative positions used in many systems. They do not, in any way, indicate military involvement or combat activity, as claimed by the Israeli occupation.

Dr. Abu Safiya’s professional path is clear and publicly known: a pediatrician, then a member of the civilian Ministry of Health staff, eventually becoming Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, which serves hundreds of thousands of civilians.

The Israeli authorities’ promotion of old documents alleging his affiliation with military work comes at a telling time—after the doctor shared his humanitarian testimony with international media, exposing the scale of the health catastrophe in Gaza. This appears to be an attempt to demonize the victim rather than address the facts.

“An Urgent Humanitarian Responsibility”

The continued detention of Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya under these conditions constitutes a grave violation of the rights to health and life, and demands immediate action by international human rights and humanitarian organizations.

Every minute that passes without providing him medical treatment or securing his release deepens a new human wound and places the world before a moral test that allows no neutrality.

Hossam Abu Safiya will remain a pediatrician who chose to save life, not take it—a symbol of human and medical resilience in Gaza, no matter how many attempts Israel makes to distort the truth.