Copyright aljazeera
More doctors and healthcare professionals are mobilising and calling for action to demand the release of Dr Hussam Abu Safia and at least 94 other Palestinian medics currently held captive by Israeli authorities. On Monday, in an event organised by Healthcare Workers Watch (HWW) and Amnesty International UK, doctors and healthcare workers protested outside St Thomas’ Hospital in central London, calling for the immediate and unconditional release of all the detained healthcare workers currently held in appalling conditions in Israel. The protest comes just days after an Israeli court extended Abu Safia’s arbitrary detention for another six months under the widely condemned Unlawful Combatants Law. A further five healthcare workers have died or been killed while in Israeli detention, and five more are missing, their whereabouts unknown. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 1,722 healthcare workers have been killed in Israeli strikes in the past two years. According to HWW, most healthcare workers were abducted by the Israeli military from their hospitals or ambulances while they were on duty. Testimonies collected by HWW and other organisations catalogue the torture and abuse that Palestinians endure in Israeli detention. Dr Rebecca Inglis, an intensive care doctor and co-founder of Gaza Medic Voices, says: “Israel’s continued detention of nearly one hundred healthcare workers is in clear contravention of International Humanitarian Law. We are gravely concerned for their welfare given the extensive evidence that Palestinian detainees are being tortured while in Israeli detention.” Who is Dr Hussam Abu Safia? Abu Safia, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in North Gaza, was arrested by Israeli forces on December 27, 2024, after troops raided the hospital, which at the time was one of the last functioning medical facilities in the region. Amnesty International says that the hospital director has been held without charge or trial under an Israeli security law. Despite relentless bombardment and the tragic death of his own son in an Israeli air strike, Abu Safia remained on duty, caring for patients and leading his team through unimaginable conditions. Since his detention, credible reports have emerged of torture, physical abuse and degrading treatment, including suffering significant weight loss and the denial of adequate medical care, hygiene and timely access to legal counsel – in clear violation of international law. Israel’s systematic attack on Gaza’s health infrastructure At least 94 percent of hospitals in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed, with many no longer operational. In addition to this, skilled doctors and healthcare workers have been killed, and paired with the detention of healthcare workers – most of whom were detained while working within hospitals and healthcare facilities – it has added to the immense pressure on Gaza’s vulnerable health system. Between October 7, 2023, to October 20, 2025, HWW documented a total of 431 cases of detained Palestinian healthcare workers. As of October 20, 2025: 309 of the 431 detained healthcare workers are now confirmed to have been released; of which 67 were released as part of the latest exchange deal on October 13 Five healthcare workers are still missing (three senior physicians, an UNRWA pharmacist and a senior physiotherapist) Five HCWs have reportedly been killed or died in Israeli detention, however, their bodies have not been returned to their families. HWW has said it has not yet received an update from the families of 22 detained healthcare workers, who are not included in the “confirmed detained” or “confirmed released” figures. Who are the other healthcare professionals being held? The healthcare professionals still detained by Israel have spent an average of 511 days in detention, with some held captive since the early weeks of the war. Of the 95 being held, 80 are from Gaza, while the remaining 15 are from the occupied West Bank. From Gaza alone, 31 nurses have been detained, followed by 17 physicians, 15 hospital support and management staff, 14 paramedics, two pharmacists and one medical technician. Twenty-five held senior positions, 50 occupied mid-level positions, while five were junior healthcare workers. All except one are male. Most of the healthcare workers lived in North Gaza, with 36 of the prisoners from there, followed by 24 from Khan Younis, 18 from Gaza City and 3 from Rafah. The table below lists more information about the 95 healthcare workers still held captive by Israel.
