Al-Shifa Hospital Director Released By Israel, Alleges 'Daily Torture' With Batons, Dogs

Israel has released the director of Gaza's al-Shifa hospital, Mohammed Abu Selmia, after holding him for seven months without charge or trial.  

Abu Selmia was arrested on November 22 while escorting a UN-led evacuation of patients from Shifa Hospital, which Israel has accused of being used as a Hamas command centre. However, Abu Selmia and other health officials have repeatedly denied these allegations, stating that the hospital is a civilian facility providing essential medical care to the people of Gaza.

Abu Selmia's release, apparently due to overcrowding in Israeli detention centres, has sparked outrage from government ministers and opposition leaders, who claim he was involved in Hamas activities. 

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However, Abu Selmia maintains that his detention was "politically motivated" and that he was never charged or allowed to meet with lawyers during his imprisonment.

Abu Selmia was released back into Gaza along with 54 other Palestinian detainees, many of whom also alleged abuse.  

“Our detainees have been subjected to all kinds of torture behind bars,” Abu Selmia said at a news conference after his release. “There was almost daily torture.” He said guards broke his finger and caused his head to bleed during beatings, in which they used batons and dogs.

He said the medical staff at different facilities where he was held had also taken part in the abuse “in violation of all laws”. He said some detainees had limbs amputated because of poor medical care.

Israel's Raid On Al-Shifa Hospital

Israeli forces raided al-Shifa Hospital in November, alleging that Hamas had created an elaborate command and control centre inside the facility. Abu Selmia and other staff denied the allegations and accused Israel of recklessly endangering thousands of patients and displaced people who were sheltering there.

The military uncovered a tunnel beneath Shifa Hospital leading to a few rooms, as well as other evidence that militants had been present inside the medical centre, but the evidence fell short of what it had claimed before the raid.

Israel has since raided several other Gaza hospitals on similar allegations, forcing them to shut down or dramatically reduce services even as tens of thousands have been wounded in Israeli strikes or sickened in the harsh conditions of the war. The army raided Shifa a second time earlier this year, causing heavy destruction after saying that militants had regrouped there.

Since the start of the war, Israeli forces have detained thousands of Palestinians from Gaza and the occupied West Bank, crowding military detention facilities and prisons. Many are being held without charge or trial in what is known as administrative detention.

War On Gaza

Israel launched its offensive after Hamas' Oct 7 attack, in which Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 civilians and took another 250 hostage. At least 37,900 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

Most of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have fled their homes, with many displaced multiple times. Israeli restrictions, ongoing fighting and the breakdown of public order have hindered the delivery of humanitarian aid, fuelling widespread hunger and sparking fears of famine. 

(With AP Inputs)