Healthcare professionals are intensifying calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safia and at least 94 other Palestinian medics currently held by Israeli authorities, many reportedly abducted while on duty from hospitals or ambulances.
In an urgent show of solidarity, doctors organized by Healthcare Workers Watch (HWW) and Amnesty International UK protested outside St Thomas’ Hospital in London, just days after an Israeli court extended Abu Safia’s arbitrary detention under the widely condemned Unlawful Combatants Law.
Organizers express grave concern over the detained workers' welfare, citing extensive evidence collected by HWW detailing torture and abuse endured by Palestinians in detention a clear contravention of International Humanitarian Law.
This mobilization comes amid horrifying statistics five detained healthcare workers have died or been killed in Israeli custody, five more are missing, and the Palestinian Ministry of Health reports at least 1,722 healthcare workers have been killed in Israeli strikes over the past two years.
