Criticism as Israel extends detention of Gaza doctor

A decision by Israel’s top court to deny the release of a prominent Gaza doctor has been condemned as a "profound moral and legal failure".

Dr Hussam Abu Safiya has been held without charge or trial since December 2024, when he was detained by the Israeli military while serving as the director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza.

Yesterday, Israel’s Supreme Court rejected an appeal to release the 52-year-old, who is being held under the country’s controversial ‘Unlawful Combatants Law’.

The court based its decision on what were described as "confidential materials" that were not shared with Dr Abu Safiya or his lawyer, Nasser Odeh.

His ongoing detainment has been criticised by human rights campaigners and medics, including Irish vascular trauma surgeon Dr Morgan McGonagle, who has spent time working in Gaza.

He described the latest development to RTÉ News as "shameful" and "dehumanising".

Dr Abu Safiya is among at least 14 doctors and dozens of other medical staff from Gaza who have been detained in Israel without charge for more than a year.

A spokesperson for the Supreme Court declined to comment when questions about Abu Safiya’s appeal were raised by news agency Reuters.

Who is Dr Hussam Abu Safiya?

Dr Hussam Abu Safiya is a Palestinian paediatrician who came to embody the immense pressures and dangers faced by Gaza's medical workers.

He led the Kamal Adwan Hospital through an 85-day siege by the Israeli military, releasing videos in which he pleaded for support and supplies. One of his most notable videos was recorded after a drone strike killed his son near the hospital.

Dr Abu Safiya was among several doctors who refused to leave dozens of newborn infants in the hospital after the Israeli military ordered them to vacate in 2023.

He was detained in December 2024 after the Israeli military captured the hospital for a second time.

Accusations, denials, no charges

In a statement to RTÉ News, Israel’s military said Dr Hussam Abu Safiya was "apprehended for suspected involvement in terrorist activities, and for holding a rank in the Hamas terror organisation".

In the 17 months since he was detained, however Dr Abu Safiya has not been charged with any criminal offence.

The accusations made by the IDF have been questioned by Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), Amnesty International and other campaigning groups, which say no credible evidence has been produced.

Naji Abbas, director of the Prisoners and Detainees Department at the PHRI, described the claims as "propaganda", arguing that "if they had anything saying he's a member of Hamas then they would charge him. But they have not charged him."

He is being held under Israel's ‘Unlawful Combatants Law’, which allows the state to indefinitely detain those alleged to belong to terrorist organisations or to have participated directly or indirectly in ‘hostile actions’.

The law also determines that both the hearing and the ruling are subject to a gag order.

Concerns over prison conditions

Concerns have also been raised about the conditions facing Dr Abu Safiya in prison.

Last week, he looked noticeably thinner when appearing by video link at a Supreme Court hearing in Jerusalem.

According to his lawyer Nasser Odeh and the PHRI, he has been held in solitary confinement for the past 13 days.

"States have the power to end his ordeal, and we urge them to use it."

Prior to that had lost "more than 20 kilograms of his weight, left in the same clothes for almost 10 months and not been provided with the medication that he needs for high blood pressure problems," Naji Abbas told RTÉ News.

Israel's prison service has denied the allegations of mistreatment.

‘Disappointing, but not surprising’

The case of Dr Abu Safiya has received international attention, including in Ireland.

Among those reacting to the latest developments in his case was vascular trauma surgeon Dr Morgan McGonagle, who is based at University Hospital Waterford but has travelled to Gaza to treat patients as recently as last year.

He described the news as "disappointing, but not surprising," adding that it "is another shameful act from a country that pertains to be a sovereign nation."

In November 2025, Dr Abu Safiya’s case was also raised in the Dáil following a question from People Before Profit-Solidarity TD Ruth Coppinger on advocating for the release of Palestinian health workers.

Responding, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris said "humanitarian workers must be protected at all times as they carry out their life-saving work", and called for "Dr Abu Safiya to be afforded urgent access to his legal team".

Amnesty International has also highlighted his case, saying that his detention is "a reflection of Israel’s systematic targeting of Palestinian health workers and the decimation of the healthcare system in Gaza".

In March, two United Nations-appointed rapporteurs called on Israel to immediately release the Gaza doctor.

They cited what they said was evidence of "severe torture" against him.

"States have the power to end his ordeal, and we urge them to use it," they said.

Despite those repeated international calls for his release, Dr Abu Safiya will remain in prison without charge for the foreseeable future.

He is being held alongside dozens of other Palestinian medical workers deemed central to rebuilding Gaza’s shattered health system.