/ / ISRAEL AND THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY: RELEASE PEDIATRICIAN AND HOSPITAL DIRECTOR

ISRAEL AND THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY: RELEASE PEDIATRICIAN AND HOSPITAL DIRECTOR

UA: 3.25

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On December 27, 2024, the Israeli military raided Kamal Adwan hospital in Mashrou’ Beit Lahiya and arbitrarily detained its director, Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, along with other medical staff and patients. The raid put the hospital, the last functioning major medical facility in the North Gaza governorate, out of service.

Dr Hussam Abu Safiya has been a prominent voice of Gaza’s decimated healthcare sector.

April 28, 2026 Update: The Israeli court approved the extension of Abu Safiya’s detention under the Unlawful Combatant Law without filing any charges against him, rejecting the defense’s request for his immediate release. Abu Safiya continues to be held in Negev Prison under harsh conditions and is being denied access to his essential medication and adequate medical treatment, despite his deteriorating health.

Israeli authorities must immediately release him. Pending his release, they must disclose his whereabouts and grant him access to a lawyer and ensure his protection from torture and other ill-treatment, and provide him with adequate healthcare.

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Deadline to take action has extended from September 4, 2025 to October 27, 2026.

Please take urgent action before the deadline of October 27, 2026.

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Step 1

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Remember to send your letter by October 27, 2026.

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Sample Letter

Dear Maj. Gen. Itai Ofir,

I am writing to you to demand the immediate release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, a pediatrician and the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in the occupied Gaza Strip, who was arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared by Israeli forces on December 27, 2024, along with other hospital staff and patients, following a deadly raid on the hospital, which put it out of service.

Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, 51, has for months acted as one of the most prominent voices of Gaza’s decimated healthcare sector, providing information about the healthcare situation in the North Gaza governorate, particularly since Israeli forces laid a near-total siege to the area since October 6, 2024. He continued to bear witness and treat children despite the killing of his son in October 2024.

Testimonies collected by Amnesty International and other human rights groups reveal a dreadful reality inside Israeli prisons and detention centers, where Palestinian detainees, including health workers, face systematic torture and other ill-treatment.

I urge you to secure the release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya and all other Palestinians forcibly disappeared and arbitrarily detained by Israel. Pending Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya’s release, I urge you to disclose his whereabouts and ensure his protection from all forms of torture and other ill-treatment, including coercion. Also pending his release, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya must be granted access to legal counsel and adequate medical care while in detention.

Yours sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]

Sample Social Post

Israeli authorities must immediately release Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan hospital who was arbitrarily detained by Israeli forces on 12/27/24. @IDF @Israel_MOD @Israel_katz @yechielleiter #UrgentActionNetwork

Tweet to the Israeli Authorities

Step 2

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Send your appeal to the government officials listed below. You can also mail, email, sign the digital petition, fax, or post on social media.

Send your letter to:

Maj. Gen. Itai Ofir, Military Advocate General

Fax: +972(0)35694526

[email protected] [email protected]

and

CC: Israeli Embassy in the United States, Ambassador Dr. Yechiel (Michael) Leiter

3514 International Drive, NW,

Washington DC 20008

@yechielleiter

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