Over 800 UK medical workers urge government to act to save Dr Abu Safiya

Over 800 UK medical workers urge government to act to save Dr Abu Safiya

Submitted by
Fleur Hargreaves
on
Tue, 07/14/2026 - 12:23

Gaza-based doctor Hussam Abu Safiya was kidnapped by the Israeli army in December 2024

Palestinian doctor Hussam Abu Safiya, who was abducted by Israel in Gaza in late 2024, appears via video link at the Israeli Supreme Court hearing in Jerusalem on 10 June (Reuters)

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More than 800 doctors, nurses and medical professionals in the UK  have signed an open letter to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, calling for her urgent intervention to secure the release of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, whose life is at risk after more than 550 days in Israeli captivity.

Abu Safiya is a Palestinian paediatrician and director of Gaza’s Kamal Adwan Hospital who rose to international prominence during Israel's genocide due to his role in helping victims.

He was abducted by Israel and has been held without charge or trial since 27 December 2024.

The letter, which was coordinated by Amnesty International UK and NHS campaign group Health Workers 4 Palestine, states: “We urge you to publicly and unequivocally demand his immediate release and use all economic, political, and diplomatic tools at your disposal to secure his release.”

It cites a visit to the Israeli detention facility by a lawyer for Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) on 2 July, who reported observing extensive bruising and marks of torture across Dr Abu Safiya’s head and body, leaving him weak and barely recognisable.

PHRI added that he has been subjected to daily beatings since he was transferred to the Rakevet facility, an underground wing within the Ayalon Prison complex in Israel's Ramla, and has been held in solitary confinement since last month. 

He has routinely been denied access to medical treatment, despite suffering from various chronic health conditions.

"Perhaps this will be the last cry."

Dr Hussam Abu Safiya's son has issued an emotional appeal calling on governments, international organisations and people around the world to act urgently to save his father's life, warning that his health condition is severe.

The appeal… pic.twitter.com/ZLQZICvBOW

— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) July 6, 2026

Abu Safiya reportedly told his lawyer: “This is the last time you’ll see me… they brought me here to kill me.”

Kerry Moscogiuri, Amnesty International UK’s chief executive, said: “Dr Hussam Abu Safiya is being tortured to the brink of death by Israeli forces – for the crime of refusing to abandon his patients. The UK government must act now, publicly and forcefully, to secure his immediate release – before it's too late.”

'Not a one off'

Amira Nimerawi, CEO of Health Workers 4 Palestine, accused the British government of allowing the doctor to “die slowly in an Israeli prison cell due to lack of political will to act consistently for him and hundreds of Palestinian health workers.

“This is not an accident. It is the result of a system of detention designed to break him.”

Abu Safiya refused multiple Israeli orders to leave Kamal Adwan Hospital, which was the last functioning hospital in northern Gaza, after the Israeli military had declared the area a combat zone.

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Israel forces then stormed the hospital, detaining 44 of its staff members, and killed Abu Safia’s son Ibrahim in a drone strike.

At the time, Abu Safiya was publishing dozens of videos documenting the near-daily attacks on the hospital, and sent out pleas to the international community to act against the bombardment.

The signatories warn that his detention and abuse is “not a one off”, noting that more than 400 other healthcare workers in Gaza have been arbitrarily detained by Israel since October 2023.

Israel has also killed over 1,700 medical workers since the start of their genocide in Gaza, amounting to an average of two to three killed a day up until the ceasefire agreement in October 2025 – which UN experts have termed a “medicide”.

Israeli forces have also damaged or destroyed every hospital in Gaza, reflecting a “pattern” of attacks that has driven Gaza’s healthcare system to the point of almost complete collapse”, according to a UN report.

The letter points out that healthcare workers and facilities are protected under international law and says that this routine targeting “have maximised the civilian death toll and that, when observed alongside Israel’s broader conduct in Gaza, are evidence of genocidal intent”. 

The health workers also called on the UK government to ensure accountability for the “arbitrary detention and killing of all Palestinian healthcare workers,” including supporting the investigations of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

One of the signatories, Dr Ghassan Abu Sittah, professor of Conflict Medicine, told Middle East Eye that “Dr Abu Safiya's continued detention shows that the destruction of Gaza's healthcare system was never incidental to the war on Gaza – it was central to the genocidal campaign then, and it remains central to it now.”

International pressure on Israel

Another signatory is Dr Omar Abdel Mannan, a paediatrician who has worked in the NHS for 15 years. He added: “A paediatrician who refused to abandon his patients has been tortured to the brink of death in detention without charge.

“The foreign secretary has the power to act – she must publicly demand Dr Abu Safiya’s immediate release and back it with sanctions on Israel. Every day she doesn’t, his life hangs in the balance.”  

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Calls have been growing internationally to release Dr Hussam Abu Sifiya since reports came out about his condition. 

There have been a number of protests in the UK, with hundreds of human rights activists, medical professionals and political figures rallying outside Downing Street to demand the British government call for his immediate release.

A group of UN experts called for the release of the Palestinian doctor, who they say was illegally detained under Israel's Unlawful Combatants Law, a statute they previously flagged as incompatible with international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

Abu Safiya's Supreme Court appeal against his detention was rejected on 16 June, extending his detention without charge until at least October 2026. 

His son, Elias, has said his father is “living through critical moments between life and death,” warning: “The world's silence today could mean the loss of an innocent human life."

The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not responded to Middle East Eye's request for comment.

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