Israeli Military Detains Director of Northern Gaza’s Last Functioning Hospital
Israeli soldiers walk in Gaza CityR17;s Shijaiyah neighborhood on Dec. 8, 2023, as part of an operation to round up hundreds of Palestinians across the northern Gaza Strip and truck some to an undisclosed location.
Oleg BurunovOver the past three months, Kamal Adwan Hospital has been hit multiple times by Israeli troops waging an offensive against Hamas fighters in northern Gaza.The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have arrested Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of the last major functioning health facility in northern Gaza, in a raid that was allegedly targeting a command center of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.The Kamal Adwan Hospital head was detained along with dozens of staff and taken to an interrogation center after the IDF stormed the facility and forced many employees and patients outside, telling them to strip in the winter weather, the Gaza Health Ministry said.
WorldLast Major Medical Facility Shuts Down in Northern Gaza After Israeli Attack – WHOYesterday, 08:48 GMTThe patients were relocated to the damaged Indonesian Hospital, where conditions were “extremely difficult,” the ministry pointed out.The Israeli military confirmed Safiya’s detention and called him a suspected Hamas terrorist operative without providing any evidence. His current whereabouts remain unknown.
Hamas, in turn, urged the UN "and all relevant international institutions to urgently intervene" and send international observers to the facility "to ascertain the truth of what is happening and to refute the lies and claims of the occupation regarding its use for military purposes."
The developments come after the World Health Organization said that the IDF raid on Kamal Adwan had put the hospital “out of service”, adding that “this horror must end and health care must be protected.”The ongoing hostilities, which have been in place since the escalation of the Palestinian-Israel conflict in October 2023, have already killed more than 45,400 Palestinians and wounded more than 108,000 others, per the Gaza Health Ministry.
