The lawyer for prominent Palestinian medic Dr Hussam Abu Safiya says he was severely beaten in an Israeli jail and fears for his life. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing BBC News.
Lawyer Nasser Odeh told the BBC that when he visited Abu Safiya last Thursday at a notorious interrogation facility called Rakefet, his client was so badly beaten that he could not recognise him. Odeh said Abu Safiya nearly lost consciousness several times and was subjected to severe violence, especially on the day of the visit. The Israel Prison Service rejected the account as false.
Israel's Supreme Court has ordered the government to respond to a petition calling for the release of Abu Safiya and 13 other Palestinian doctors. According to Odeh, Abu Safiya said more than five prison guards assaulted him with their hands, batons and hammers after an appeal, and he had not received medical treatment. Odeh said: "I had difficulty recognising his features. Bruises covered his face, around his eyes, on his neck, and on his ears. He was exhausted and unable to breathe."
Abu Safiya was director of Kamal Adwan hospital and was detained in December 2024 when Israeli forces forced patients and staff to leave, calling it a "Hamas terrorist stronghold". The IDF said he was suspected of involvement in terrorist activities. However, international aid groups deny his cooperation with Hamas.
He is held under the Unlawful Combatants Law, which allows detention without charge for an unspecified period. The UN Committee against Torture in November 2025 expressed concern about "widespread torture" of Palestinian detainees. In the same month, Physicians for Human Rights Israel said at least 94 Palestinian prisoners had died in Israeli custody.
The Israel Prison Service denied the allegations, stating all prisoners are held according to the law. Amnesty International called the case "truly horrifying". The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention deemed Abu Safiya's detention arbitrary and urged his immediate release.