Kathmandu— Reports indicate that Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, a Palestinian pediatrician abducted by Israeli forces in 2024, is being held in solitary confinement at Rakefet prison where he allegedly faces assault and starvation; his case highlights a broader pattern of attacks on Gaza’s healthcare system, including the bombing of medical warehouses and the destruction of its only specialized cancer hospital, leading to a surge in preventable deaths and raising fears of intentional harm to Palestinian patients.

Escalating Attacks on Gazan Healthcare

On July 30th, Israel bombed medical warehouses in Gaza, an act that received minimal coverage from Western media outlets beyond Al Jazeera, Mondoweiss, CNN, Reuters and some social media postings. This bombing occurred amidst a wider pattern of damage to Gaza’s healthcare infrastructure; Drop Site News reported on August 13th that cancer patients are now dying at two to three times the prewar rate due to the destruction of Gaza's only specialized cancer hospital, leaving an estimated 17,000 patients without access to essential care.

Dr. Safiya’s Imprisonment and Alleged Abuse

Dr. Abu Safiya’s condition reportedly deteriorated after he appealed his case in Israeli courts in June, leading to accusations that his jailers punished him for doing so. Activists have coined the term “medicide” – defined as the intentional killing of medical personnel or destruction of medical facilities – to describe Israel's actions toward Gazan healthcare, and Dr. Safiya’s treatment is seen as a stark example of this alleged policy. He became a symbol of hope for Gazans while working at his hospital in northern Gaza, refusing to leave under bombardment.

Shift Towards Extermination Concerns

Beyond individual cases like Dr. Safiya's, there are growing concerns that Israeli policy is shifting from ethnic cleansing towards outright extermination of the Palestinian population. The apparent reluctance to allow Gazan patients to seek medical care abroad has fueled these fears, with some observers suggesting this refusal indicates a deliberate intent to cause further harm and death. This shift is seen as potentially driven by a “depraved settler mentality” that has taken hold within the Israeli political landscape since October 7, 2023.

Calls for International Intervention

Pro-Palestinian groups are now calling on U.S. doctors to resign from the American Medical Association (AMA) in protest of its silence regarding Dr. Safiya’s case and the broader targeting of Gazan healthcare workers. The U.S. Palestinian Community Network, Doctors Against Genocide and Code Pink have launched a petition accusing the AMA of violating its own human rights policies by failing to advocate for his release. There have also been protests within Israel demanding Dr. Safiya's freedom. As of August 12th, Tehran stated it would not negotiate with the U.S. until the violence in Gaza and Lebanon ends.

Dr. Safiya remains imprisoned alongside eighty-three other Gazan healthcare workers, and their fate is seen as a critical indicator of whether Israel’s policies will ultimately prioritize expulsion or extermination.

(With inputs from CounterPunch)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.