Prominent Gaza doctor Hussam Abu Safiya has been transferred to a maximum-security Israeli prison and placed in solitary confinement after being held for 17 months without charge, according to rights groups and family members, raising fresh concerns about his health and treatment in custody.
Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, was moved from Ketziot prison to Ramon prison, part of Israel's Ganot prison complex, according to Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI).
The organisation said information gathered during a prison visit on 4 June indicated that Abu Safiya was being held alone in a tiny cell.
The transfer was also witnessed by fellow Palestinian doctors held in Israeli detention last week.
During a visit to Ketziot prison, four detained doctors told PHRI lawyers that they had seen security personnel single out Abu Safiya, handcuff him and remove him from the facility days earlier.
His son, Elias Abu Safiya, said his father's condition had deteriorated in detention and that he was being denied essential medical treatment.
According to his family, Abu Safiya developed skin diseases after being prevented from changing his clothes for months and requires surgery for shrapnel wounds in his left thigh.
"He is being held in a cell so small he can barely sit or move," Elias said.
The latest development has intensified scrutiny of Israel's continued detention of the 53-year-old physician, who became internationally known for refusing to abandon Kamal Adwan Hospital as Israeli attacks devastated northern Gaza.
Abu Safiya was detained by Israeli forces on 27 December 2024 during an operation at the hospital.
Israeli authorities classified him as an "unlawful combatant", a designation that allows prolonged detention without charge. Nearly a year and a half later, no formal charges against him have been made public.
Nasser Odeh, Abu Safiya's lawyer, said he filed an appeal on Thursday seeking his release.
According to Odeh, Israeli authorities responded that Abu Safiya remains detained under the unlawful combatants law and that all proceedings relating to his case are subject to a gag order and conducted behind closed doors.
"The only accusation is his refusal to obey the Israeli army's orders to evacuate the hospital and leave patients to their fate," his son said.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) last week renewed calls for his release, saying reports of his solitary confinement while being held without charge were deeply troubling.
"Dr Hussam Abu Safiya should never have been kidnapped by Israeli forces in Gaza and imprisoned without charge," the organisation said.
"The international community cannot remain silent while a respected physician is reportedly subjected to harsh conditions, denied adequate medical care, and isolated from the outside world without any legal justification."
According to UN standards, prolonged solitary confinement lasting more than 14 days may amount to torture.
The Israeli Prison Service said it does not provide information regarding the detention status of individual prisoners, citing privacy obligations.
Abu Safiya is one of at least 15 Palestinian doctors from Gaza currently being held by Israel without charge.