On July 14, 2026, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) demanded that Israel release Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, calling him a “Palestinian pediatrician” who is “being held and reportedly tortured in an Israeli prison with no charges, no trial and no Due Process.”
Raskin’s demand is the latest move in a months-long media campaign accusing Israel of illegally jailing and torturing an innocent doctor. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Amnesty International, the UN, and other anti-Israel voices have all called for his release, turning Abu Safiya into their newest cause célèbre.
None of them mention that he’s a Hamas colonel.
Abu Safiya directed Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, a hospital named after a PLO terrorist. Israel arrested him on Dec. 27, 2024, and has held him since under its Unlawful Combatants Law.
Abu Safiya has also served as a mouthpiece for Hamas propaganda abroad, including in the pages of The New York Times. Israel’s Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva addressed the international backlash in a July 10 statement, reaffirming that Abu Safiya used his hospital post to advance terrorist activity.
“He enabled Hamas terrorist activity against Israeli forces during IDF operations in Gaza, posing a direct threat to Israel’s national security,” the statement said.
Under his leadership, the hospital turned into a terror hub for Hamas and Islamic Jihad, a fact Hamas members themselves have admitted. He also diverted humanitarian aid to terrorist purposes, according to the statement.
Israeli forces raided the hospital once it became clear it was functioning as a Hamas command center. An Israeli investigator told Channel 12 in January 2025, less than a week after the raid: “More than 240 terrorists with blood on their hands were located at the scene. At least 15 of them infiltrated into Israel on Oct. 7, [2023,] and participated in the massacre.”
Claims that Abu Safiya is being tortured daily don’t hold up either — no signs of abuse appeared on his head or arms, both visible during his court appearance.
His detention isn’t illegal. He’s held under Israel’s Incarceration of Unlawful Combatants Law, a preventative measure, not a punitive one. Israel isn’t necessarily trying to convict Abu Safiya — it’s holding him to keep him from joining the hostilities and fighting against Israel. The law permits detaining anyone who has taken part, directly or indirectly, in hostilities against Israel, or who belongs to a group waging such hostilities, when their release would threaten state security.
This type of detention is legal under the Fourth Geneva Convention, specifically Articles 42 and 78.
Bottom Line
Jamie Raskin, Bernie Sanders, AOC, Amnesty International, and the UN are shamelessly lying when they portray Hamas colonel Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya as a harmless “Gazan pediatrician” illegally detained and tortured by Israel without charges.
In reality, as director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, this terrorist managed a major Hamas and Islamic Jihad command center, harboring over 240 terrorists—including at least 15 Oct. 7 massacre participants—while diverting humanitarian aid to jihadists and actively enabling attacks on Israeli troops. His lawful detention under Israel’s Incarceration of Unlawful Combatants Law and the Fourth Geneva Convention stands on solid legal ground, with zero credible evidence of torture.
This coordinated propaganda push to free a high-ranking operative reveals the moral bankruptcy of so-called progressives who champion terrorists while slandering Israel’s right to defend itself.
Sources
X, X, NGO Monitor, JNS, Honest Reporting, UKLFI, Fourth Geneva Convention, Article 42, Fourth Geneva Convention, Article 78
