After being granted a rare opportunity to see him in jail, the attorney for a well-known Gazan physician who has been jailed by Israel since last December has expressed her dismay at his health.
Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of the Kamal Adwan hospital in northern Gaza, has dropped a third of his body weight and survives on very little food, including two spoonfuls of rice each day, according to Ghaid Qassem, who spoke to Sky News. He has reportedly been severely beaten, she said.
“As a young woman, seeing an older man – a respected doctor like Hussam Abu Safiya – broken in front of me, degraded, surrounded by prison guards, in the worst possible condition, how am I supposed to feel?” she responded.
“He is being held under incredibly cruel and harsh conditions, and he is constantly being attacked.
“He has been viciously attacked six times now.
“The most recent occurrence occurred on June 24, the day when Israel’s conflict with Iran came to an end and the Soroka Hospital in Beersheba [Israel] was struck.
“Apparently, the jail administration chose to exact retribution. They broke inside Abu Safiya’s cell and started beating him up.
“He was assaulted, and his head, neck, and back were bruised. He later noticed irregular heartbeats and sought medical attention, but his request was turned down.
