At one point Dr. Abu Safiya was subjected to an interrogation that lasted 13 consecutive days, and each interrogation lasted about 8 to 10 hours.”
The detained Gaza hospital director, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, spent 14 days in the notorious Sde Teiman prison, and 25 days in solitary confinement in the Ofer prison, since he was abducted last December, according to an attorney who met with him recently.
“The torture he was subjected to was very difficult. At one point he was subjected to an interrogation that lasted 13 consecutive days, and each interrogation lasted about 8 to 10 hours,” Attorney Ghaida Qasem said, according to a statement from the Prisoners Media Office on Tuesday.
Video Shows Israeli Occupation’s Mistreatment of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya
Qasem’s visit to Dr. Abu Safiya was only the second legal visit he has received in the more than 70 days that he has been in Israeli detention.
He was abducted along with other medical staff and civilians from the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza during an Israeli army raid on the medical facility.
Unlawful Combatants Law
Qasem visited the doctor at the Ofer prison where he is currently being held “and has undergone harsh interrogations.”
Despite his health issues, said Qasem, he is being denied his basic rights.
“During interrogations, he was subjected to abuse, torture, and brutal assaults,” she said, adding that he was unaware of his mother’s passing “and asked whether his martyred son’s body had been transferred from the hospital for burial.”
Dr. Abu Safiya Detained under ‘Unlawful Combatants’ Law – Rights Group
Last month, an order was issued by the Israeli army that Dr. Abu Safiya be detained under the Unlawful Combatants Law,” according to the Al Mezan Center for Human Rights.
“This law enables prolonged detention without charges, stripping detainees of any meaningful judicial review or due process rights,” the Gaza-based rights group explained.
He first met with a legal representative from the Al Mezan Center last month.
Electric Shocks
Dr. Abu Safiya explained during that meeting that he was initially taken to the Sde Teiman military detention camp where he was “forcibly stripped, having his hands shackled, and being made to sit on sharp gravel for approximately five hours by Israeli forces.”
He was also subjected “to severe physical abuse, including beatings with batons and electric shock sticks, as well as repeated blows to the chest,” the statement said.
Gaza’s Medical Workers ‘Unlawfully Detained, Tortured, Starved’ – Report
On January 9, 2025, the doctor was transferred to Ofer Prison where he was held in solitary confinement for 25 days of which he endured “nearly continuous interrogation for 10 days.”
At one point, the rights group said, he lost consciousness in his cell due to severe breathing difficulties.
Declining Health
The doctor also reported a severe decline in his health, with his weight dropping from 96 kg to 84 kg, a 12 kg loss in less than two months.
This is “further evidence of Israel’s systematic starvation policies against Palestinian prisoners and detainees,” said Al Mezan.
In mid-February, the first footage of the doctor was released by Israeli media outlets since his detention, showing him handcuffed and shackled, and appearing exhausted and fatigued.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
