{"id":59765,"date":"2026-06-16T15:29:02","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T23:29:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/?p=59765"},"modified":"2026-06-16T15:37:21","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T23:37:21","slug":"profound-moral-and-legal-failure-israeli-supreme-court-rejects-appeal-of-dr-hussam-abu-safiya","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/2026\/06\/16\/profound-moral-and-legal-failure-israeli-supreme-court-rejects-appeal-of-dr-hussam-abu-safiya\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Profound Moral and Legal Failure\u2019: Israeli Supreme Court Rejects Appeal of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Defenders of Palestine, human rights, and the rule of law denounced the Israeli Supreme Court\u2019s rejection Tuesday of an appeal from Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the Gaza hospital director imprisoned by Israel for 535 days without charge or trial and allegedly tortured by his captors.<\/p>\n<p>In its decision, Israel\u2019s highest court cited a <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/ihl-databases.icrc.org\/en\/national-practice\/incarceration-unlawful-combatants-law-2002\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2002 law<\/a> allowing the government to detain people it classifies as \u201cunlawful combatants\u201d without charging them with a criminal offense or prosecuting them as prisoners of war.<\/p>\n<div class=\"rm-col-center col sm-mb-1\">\n<div class=\"widget__body clearfix sm-mt-1\">\n<div class=\"body js-expandable clearfix js-listicle-body css-listicle-body-2677047187\" data-headline=\"'Profound Moral and Legal Failure': Israeli Supreme Court Rejects Appeal of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya\">\n<div class=\"body-description\" data-rm-calc-width=\"700\">\n<p>The <em>Times of Israel<\/em> <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/supreme-court-rejects-appeal-of-gaza-hospital-chief-a-hamas-officer-detained-by-israel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a> that because the Supreme Court\u2019s decision was based on classified intelligence, it will not be publicly released.<\/p>\n<div class=\"embed-x\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8The recent images of Dr. Hussam Abu Safyia are shocking evidence of Israel&#39;s abuse against Palestinian detainees. Dr. Abu Safyia has been arbitrarily detained for one and a half years without charges, while being physically abused and denied healthcare. His recent solitary\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/4mhyfAIo1C\">pic.twitter.com\/4mhyfAIo1C<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Amnesty International USA (@amnestyusa) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/amnestyusa\/status\/2066654511192559698?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<p>Israel claims Abu Safiya \u2013 a 52-year-old pediatrician who was the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia when he was abducted on December 28, 2024 during one of multiple Israeli sieges and assaults on the facility \u2013 is a colonel in Gaza\u2019s Military Medical Services. Israeli officials cited the service\u2019s own records and a 2016 photo showing the doctor wearing a uniform and seated beside members of Hamas, which carried out the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.<\/p>\n<p>However, supporters of Abu Safiya, human rights groups, and many medical organizations contend that \u201ccolonel\u201d is a state medical corps rank rather than a combat command role, and note that Hamas\u2019 political wing rules Gaza. They point to positions and organizations like the US surgeon general and <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usphs.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps<\/a> \u2013 which is one of the nation\u2019s eight uniformed services but not part of the military \u2013 as illustrative of the concept.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe rejection of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya\u2019s appeal and his continued detention without charge represent a profound moral and legal failure,\u201d <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/PHRIsrael\/status\/2066818982460498325\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a> Naji Abbas, director of the Prisoners and Detainees Department at Physicians for Human Rights Israel, following the court\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDr. Abu Safiya\u2019s case is not an isolated one. It illustrates how judicial review proceedings for Palestinian detainees from Gaza have, in practice, become little more than a procedural formality,\u201d Abbas added. \u201cEvery month, hundreds of detention review hearings take place, yet to the best of our knowledge, they have not resulted in the meaningful reconsideration or revocation of detention orders \u2013 even in cases involving doctors and other medical personnel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Palestinian Center for Prisoners Advocacy <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/PalPrisonersA\/status\/2066787021553537485\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a> the high court\u2019s rejection of Abu Safiya\u2019s appeal \u201cconstitutes a clear violation of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions, which provide special protection for medical personnel during armed conflicts and prohibit their targeting or arbitrary detention for carrying out their humanitarian and professional duties.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDr. Abu Safiya remains held in solitary confinement at Nafha Prison under harsh and degrading detention conditions, while being denied necessary medical treatment and the most basic fundamental rights guaranteed to prisoners and detainees,\u201d the center continued, adding that it \u201cholds the Israeli occupation authorities fully responsible for the life and safety of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, and calls for his immediate release, the provision of urgent medical care, and an end to the policy of arbitrary detention against medical and humanitarian personnel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>United Nations experts in March <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/news\/free-dr-hussam-abu-safiya-2676615117\" target=\"_self\">cited<\/a> \u201creports that Dr. Abu Safiya has been subjected to torture and other cruel and degrading treatment, and that his health condition remains dire,\u201d as well as \u201cflagrantly arbitrary\u201d detention, in calling for his release. UN agencies, human rights groups, elected officials, and professional groups including the American Academy of Pediatrics are among those <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/news\/free-dr-hussam-abu-safiya-2676615117\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">demanding<\/a> that Israel free Abu Safiya.<\/p>\n<p>Last week, Abu Safiya \u2013 who showed visible signs of his alleged torture \u2013 appeared remotely via video before the Supreme Court to <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/news\/abu-safiya-demands-his-release\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">demand his release<\/a> following at least four major detention extensions or renewals.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy detention is unjust and arbitrary, and I demand my immediate release,\u201d he <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/news\/abu-safiya-demands-his-release\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">told<\/a> the court. \u201cI am a pediatrician who provides medical services and care to patients, the wounded and vulnerable people in the Gaza Strip.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Abu Safiya was abducted while defying an Israeli <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2024\/12\/27\/middleeast\/israeli-forces-order-staff-and-patients-evacuate-gaza-intl-hnk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">forced displacement order<\/a> by refusing to evacuate Kamal Adwan Hospital as long as patients were still being treated. In one of several Israel Defense Forces attacks on the facility, Israeli troops surrounded, bombarded, and then stormed the hospital over three weeks in December 2024, killing and wounding staff and patients while terrified children and other people were being treated inside.<\/p>\n<p>During a previous Israeli attack on Kamal Adwan, Abu Safiya\u2019s 15-year-old son was <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dropsitenews.com\/p\/the-disappearance-of-dr-hussam-abu-safiya-hospital-gaza\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">killed<\/a> in a drone strike, and the doctor was seriously wounded in a separate drone attack that left six pieces of shrapnel in his leg.<\/p>\n<p>As the invaders expelled Kamal Adwan\u2019s patients and staff, Abu Safiya <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.palestinechronicle.com\/catastrophic-situation-after-israel-attacks-kamal-adwan-what-we-know-so-far\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sounded the alarm<\/a> on the \u201ccatastrophic\u201d conditions inside the facility, which, <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.middleeasteye.net\/news\/north-gaza-palestinian-women-recall-sexual-assault-israeli-forces\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">according to<\/a> alleged victims and witnesses, included Israelis sexually assaulting women and girls as young as 13.<\/p>\n<div class=\"embed-x\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Doctor Hussam Abu Safiya, the Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, described the catastrophic conditions threatening the lives of patients and the injured due to the ongoing attacks targeting the hospital amidst a severe Israeli siege on northern Gaza.<\/p>\n<p>Abu Safiya called on the\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ntb6CFgNha\">pic.twitter.com\/ntb6CFgNha<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Quds News Network (@QudsNen) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/QudsNen\/status\/1864739297984721218?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 5, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/div>\n<p>After his capture, Abu Safiya was first jailed at the <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/news\/gaza-detainees\" target=\"_self\">notorious<\/a> Sde Teiman prison in Israel\u2019s Negev Desert \u2013 where dozens of detainees have died and where torture, sexual assault, and other abuses have been reported\u2014and then Ofer Prison in the illegally occupied West Bank. He was subsequently transferred to Ketziot Prison and then Nafha Prison in the Ramon Prison complex.<\/p>\n<p>Abu Safiya said he has <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/menarights.org\/en\/case\/hussam-idris-amer-abu-safiya\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">endured torture<\/a> by his captors \u2013 including beatings with batons and electric shocks \u2013 and suffered severe weight loss, broken ribs, and other injuries, for which he was allegedly denied adequate medical care.<\/p>\n<p>Israeli authorities deny these accusations. However, there have been many documented and otherwise credible reports of health and medical <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/tag\/workers\">workers<\/a> being tortured by Israeli forces \u2013 sometimes fatally, as in the case of Dr. Adnan al-Bursh, who headed the orthopedic department at al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2024\/11\/24\/dying-in-hell-palestinian-medics-jailed-by-israel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">According to<\/a> <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/tag\/francesca-albanese\" target=\"_self\">Francesca Albanese<\/a>, the United Nations special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, al-Bursh was \u201clikely raped to death.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Responding to the Israeli Supreme Court\u2019s decision, former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis \u2013 an outspoken advocate for Palestinian rights \u2013 <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/yanisvaroufakis\/status\/2066851550979346531\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a> Tuesday on social media that \u201cthe heroic doctor\u2019s torture by Israel continues.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey continue to torture Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya for the crime of not abandoning his patients,\u201d he added. \u201cWithout laying charges [or] offering him anything resembling due process, Israel is killing him slowly. One day, everyone will say they were against this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On Monday, the editors of <em>Haaretz<\/em>, Israel\u2019s oldest daily newspaper, asserted in an <a class=\"rm-stats-tracked\" href=\"https:\/\/www.haaretz.com\/opinion\/editorial\/2026-06-15\/ty-article-opinion\/a-doctor-belongs-in-a-hospital-not-a-prison-cell-free-abu-safiyah-now\/0000019e-c7b5-d43d-a39f-e7fd7e100000\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">editorial<\/a> that Abu Safiya\u2019s \u201ccontinued detention, and that of the other doctors from Gaza, is an injustice and constitutes collective punishment for Gaza\u2019s residents, who need their service\u201d amid an ongoing public health crisis.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf Israel has evidence against Abu Safiya, it should indict him and present that evidence,\u201d the editors argued. \u201cIf it doesn\u2019t have evidence against him, it needs to release him, and all the other jailed doctors, promptly.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Defenders of Palestine, human rights, and the rule of law denounced the Israeli Supreme Court\u2019s rejection Tuesday of an appeal from Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the Gaza hospital director imprisoned by Israel for 535 days without charge or trial and allegedly tortured by his captors. In its decision, Israel\u2019s highest court cited a 2002 law [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":372,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_social_image_id":59770,"_social_image_url":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"coauthors":[806],"class_list":["post-59765","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"meta_box":{"disable_donate_message":"0","custom_donate_message":"","_social_image_id":"59770","subtitle":"\u201cIf Israel has evidence against Abu Safiya, it should indict him and present that evidence,\u201d said the editors of Israel\u2019s oldest daily newspaper. \u201cIf it doesn\u2019t have evidence against him, it needs to release him.\u201d "},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59765","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/372"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59765"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59765\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59769,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59765\/revisions\/59769"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59765"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59765"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59765"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=59765"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}