In this episode of Occupied Thoughts, FMEP Fellow Ahmed Moor speaks with Naji Abbas, Director of the Prisoners and Detainees Department at Physicians for Human Rights Israel, about the Israeli army’s policies and practices of kidnapping and disappearing Palestinians into detention, where torture is rampant. Among the 5000 Palestinians detained without charge are 14 senior Palestinian doctors from Gaza, including Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza, whose condition has deteriorated. Following his most recent visit to Dr. Abu Safiya, attorney Nasser Odeh reported “tangible and immediate danger” to Dr. Abu Safiya’s life due to a “dramatic escalation in the assaults and torture” inflicted by Israeli prison guards against Dr. Abu Safiya. Ahmed and Naji place the detention of Gaza’s doctors within the logic of genocide, as it is part of the dismantling of the healthcare services people need to live.
Resources from Physicians for Human Rights Israel:
- “Physicians for Human Rights Israel Warns of Imminent Danger to Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya’s Life”: https://www.phr.org.il/en/imminent-danger-to-dr-hussam-abu-safiyas-life/
- Physicians for Human Rights Israel’s podcast, Diagnosing the Barriers: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uwVBdUIerZZpdRY5pIygT
- See especially their newest episode, “Gaza Needs its Doctors — Release the 14,” featuring PHRI’s Maha Loulou and Lee Caspi: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1FINJyQYJlPO97shWJNOhQ
- Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya to his lawyer: “This is the last time you will see me… They brought me here to kill me“
- “Torture of Medical Staff from Gaza in Israel • Report and Testimonies“
See also B’Tselem’s report “Living Hell: the Israeli Prison System as a Network of Torture Camps”
Naji Abbas is Director of the Prisoners and Detainees Department at Physicians for Human Rights Israel. Follow PHRI on X
Ahmed Moor is a Palestinian-American writer born in Gaza and a Fellow at FMEP. You can follow Ahmed on Substack at: https://ahmedmoor.substack.com and on X at @AhmedMoor.