{"id":110600,"date":"2026-07-08T15:38:05","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T15:38:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/un-inquiry-urges-release-of-gaza-doctor-held-by-israel-since-december-2024-the-express-tribune\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T15:38:05","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T15:38:05","slug":"un-inquiry-urges-release-of-gaza-doctor-held-by-israel-since-december-2024-the-express-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/un-inquiry-urges-release-of-gaza-doctor-held-by-israel-since-december-2024-the-express-tribune\/","title":{"rendered":"UN inquiry urges release of Gaza doctor held by Israel since December 2024 | The Express Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"

Palestinian Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, captured by the Israeli military in Gaza in late 2024, participates in the Israeli Supreme Court hearing in Jerusalem via video link on June 10, 2026. Photo: Screengrab\/REUTERS <\/p>\n

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A United Nations (UN) inquiry on Wednesday expressed concern at reports of abuse against a prominent Palestinian doctor seized by the Israeli military in Gaza in \u200bDecember 2024 and still being held in Israel and urged his release.<\/p>\n

The UN \u200cIndependent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, called for the immediate release of Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n

Rights groups and Abu Safiya’s \u200blawyer have said his life is in imminent danger, and he continues to be \u200bheld without charge, according to the Physicians for Human Rights Israel, an Israeli \u2060rights group.<\/p>\n

Read: <\/strong>UN deems Israel’s detention of Gaza doctor ‘arbitrary’<\/a><\/p>\n

“The actions of the Israeli Prison Service guards towards Palestinian detainees raise grave concerns \u200bof violations of international law that likely amount to international crimes. Dr Abu Safiya\u2019s medical condition \u200bis the direct result of these actions,” the UN inquiry said in a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n

An Israel Prison Service (IPS)\u00a0spokesperson said on Wednesday, “The allegations and characterisations described are false, outrageous, and entirely without factual basis.”<\/p>\n

The spokesperson did not \u200bname Abu Safiya, but the IPS has previously rejected allegations that he and other doctors have \u200bbeen mistreated in prison.<\/p>\n

On Monday, Abu Safiya’s lawyer said that his health was in danger and that he \u200chad \u2060been subjected to abuse daily. In June, Abu Safiya attended a Supreme Court hearing in Jerusalem via video link and appeared noticeably thinner in the face and around his abdomen.<\/p>\n

Also Read: <\/strong>1,000 days of genocide: Gaza\u2019s journalists pay devastating price for documenting Israeli atrocities<\/a><\/p>\n

The UN inquiry said the reported conduct of the Israeli authorities towards Abu Safiya reflects a broader pattern of violations \u200bthat it identified in \u200bprevious reports.<\/p>\n

In September \u20602025, it said the Israeli authorities had committed genocide by targeting the healthcare system and medical professionals in Gaza since October 2023, an accusation that \u200bIsrael described as scandalous.<\/p>\n

Read more: <\/strong>Israel targeted Gaza children resulting in genocide, UN inquiry says<\/a><\/p>\n

Israel has accused the inquiry of having a political \u200bagenda against \u2060the country and of diverging from its mandate and has declined to cooperate with it.<\/p>\n

On Monday, a separate UN rights body called Israel’s detention of Abu Safiya arbitrary and called for his immediate release. \u2060In its \u200bfinding<\/a>, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention said \u200bIsrael’s actions contravened multiple articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as the International Covenant on Civil \u200band Political Rights.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Palestinian Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, captured by the Israeli military in Gaza in late 2024, participates in the Israeli Supreme Court hearing in Jerusalem via video link on June 10, 2026. Photo: Screengrab\/REUTERS A United Nations (UN) inquiry on Wednesday expressed concern at reports of abuse against a prominent Palestinian doctor seized by the Israeli […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":110601,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i.tribune.com.pk\/media\/images\/gaza-dr1783517539-0\/gaza-dr1783517539-0-640x480.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-110600","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t