UN body finds Israel detention of Gaza pediatrician arbitrary, calls for immediate release

The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found Monday that Israel’s detention of Gazan doctor Hussam Abu Safiya violates international human rights law, and called for his immediate release, noting that his lawyer and rights groups warn that his life is in imminent danger. The five-member panel of independent experts, which operates as a special procedure of the UN Human Rights Council, found that Israel’s actions contravened multiple articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The panel found the detention arbitrary on three grounds: that Abu Safiya was never informed of charges and was denied access to a court to challenge his detention; that his right to a fair trial was violated through secret evidence and reversal of the presumption of innocence; and that his detention was discriminatory, reflecting what the panel described as the systematic denial of procedural rights to Palestinians held under the Unlawful Combatants Law. The panel also raised broader concerns, noting that the case, one of several submitted to for its review, “may indicate a widespread or systematic practice of arbitrary detention in the country.” “The appropriate remedy would be to release Mr. Abu Safiya immediately and accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law,” the Working Group said. Abu Safiya, 52, is a pediatrician who served as director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza when Israeli forces detained him on December 27, 2024. He is being held under Israel’s Unlawful Combatants Law, which permits detention for indefinitely renewable periods. The Israeli military has accused him of membership in Hamas; the Gaza Health Ministry and Hamas have denied the allegation, and no evidence has been made publicly available. The MENA Rights Group, which filed the complaint with the Working Group, said Abu Safiya has faced repeated solitary confinement, lengthy interrogations, and beatings with batons and electric shock sticks. In March 2026, UN Special Rapporteurs separately raised alarm after receiving reports he had been subjected to “severe torture.” His lawyer, Nasser Odeh, who visited him at Nitzan prison last week, said the doctor’s condition had deteriorated markedly. “His physical and psychological state, the severe injuries visible on his body, and his personal testimony leave no room for doubt: his life is in immediate danger,” Odeh said. Israel’s Supreme Court last month rejected an appeal for Abu Safiya’s release, relying on confidential materials under the Unlawful Combatants Law. Israel did not respond to the Working Group’s July 2025 request to clarify the factual and legal grounds for the detention. The Israel Prison Service and Israel’s diplomatic mission in Geneva did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday, according to Reuters, via Al-Monitor; the Prison Service has previously rejected allegations that Abu Safiya and other detained Gazan doctors have been mistreated. The Working Group has no enforcement mechanism, but its opinions are often cited in cases before international courts. Abu Safiya is among at least 14 doctors from Gaza who have been detained in Israel without charge for more than a year.