Rights center: 360 medical personnel from Gaza detained in Israeli prisons
The Palestine Center for Prisoners Studies has reported that Zionist regime’s occupation forces have abducted over 360 members of Gaza’s medical and healthcare workforce since the genocidal war began on October 7, 2023.
The Center noted that four of them died in custody due to torture and medical neglect.
In a statement released Sunday, the Center said that Zionist regime’s authorities continue to hold approximately 3,500 detainees from Gaza, including dozens of healthcare workers, doctors, paramedics, and administrators, most notably Dr. Hossam Abu Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza; Dr. Mohammad Obeid, head of reconstructive and orthopedic surgery; and Dr. Mohammad Zahir from the same hospital.
The report stated that Zionist regime’s forces had stormed several hospitals during military operations, including Kamal Adwan, Al-Shifa, Indonesian, Al-Awda, and Nasser Hospitals, arresting both patients and medical staff, and even clearing out entire departments. Some paramedics were also arrested while performing their duties of rescuing and transporting the wounded in ambulances.
Among the medical staff who died in Israeli custody were Dr. Adnan Ahmed Al-Bursh, head of orthopedic surgery at Al-Shifa Hospital, Dr. Iyad Al-Rantisi, head of obstetrics at Kamal Adwan Hospital, paramedic Hamdan Hassan Enaya from Khan Yunis, and nurse Ziad Mohammad Al-Dalu from Al-Shifa Hospital
The Center emphasized that the arrest of healthcare workers constitutes a flagrant violation of international law and humanitarian agreements, which criminalize targeting medical personnel during armed conflict. It called on the World Health Organization and Doctors Without Borders to intervene urgently, protect medical staff, and push for the release of detainees, particularly Dr. Abu Safia, who is reportedly in deteriorating health at Ofer Prison.
Meanwhile, Zionist regime’s forces, fully backed by the United States, are waging a campaign of genocide in Gaza, with 65,283 people martyred, 166,575 injured, and over 9,000 missing, according to ongoing estimates. A devastating famine has claimed hundreds of lives, and more than 2 million Palestinians are now displaced, living in catastrophic conditions amid total destruction.