Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) demanded on July 20, 2026, that Israel immediately release all arbitrarily detained Palestinian healthcare workers, citing dire detention conditions and the solitary confinement of Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. The medical charity stated it was "outraged by the treatment of healthcare workers, most of whom are being detained in dire conditions, without justification or cause" (MSF).

Israel is holding Dr. Abu Safia without trial, having classified him as an "unlawful combatant." He has reportedly been tortured since being detained by Israeli forces more than a year and a half ago. His lawyer, Nasser Odeh, warned that the doctor's health was in danger and that he showed signs of regular torture. Before his detention, Dr. Abu Safia had been a prominent voice highlighting the effects of Israel's war on Gaza's healthcare system. MSF stated that his treatment "follows an appalling pattern of the Israeli authorities detaining and targeting medical staff across Palestine."

MSF also called for the "immediate and unconditional release" of orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Mohammed Obeid. He has been imprisoned for more than 600 days after being arrested while working at Kamal Adwan Hospital. The organization demanded that all arbitrarily detained medical personnel be granted access to adequate medical care and dignified conditions pending their release.

Citing data from Healthcare Workers Watch, MSF reported that 95 Palestinian healthcare workers remain detained by Israeli authorities since October 2023. Healthcare Workers Watch reported in April 2026 that 446 Palestinian healthcare workers have been unlawfully detained by Israeli forces since October 7, 2023. Six Palestinian healthcare workers have reportedly been killed in Israeli detention, and their bodies are still held by Israel. Physicians for Human Rights Israel reports that more than 50 healthcare workers are currently being held in inhumane conditions by Israel, including 15 doctors. Physicians for Human Rights Israel has petitioned the Israeli Supreme Court for the release of the detained healthcare workers (Al Jazeera).

The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention have both called for Israel to release Dr. Abu Safia and all arbitrarily detained medical personnel. MSF stated that "for too long, too many world leaders have failed to condemn Israel's conduct in Palestine. Silence has become complicity."

The convergence of demands from MSF, UN bodies, and Israeli civil society organizations places the Israeli judiciary and the international community at a clear intersection. The invocation of international legal mechanisms, including the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, runs parallel to domestic legal pressure via the Israeli Supreme Court petition filed by Physicians for Human Rights Israel. These tracks test the operational boundaries of international humanitarian law protections afforded to medical personnel in conflict zones.

Israel's classification of detained medical staff as "unlawful combatants" establishes the legal framework underpinning the detentions. This classification bypasses standard criminal proceedings, allowing the state to hold individuals like Dr. Abu Safia without trial. The reports of torture and solitary confinement, corroborated by defense counsel, raise distinct obligations under the Convention Against Torture, to which Israel is a state party.

The scale of the detentions introduces a structural dimension to the Gaza healthcare crisis. With 95 healthcare workers reportedly still detained and 446 processed through the system since October 2023, the removal of medical personnel compounds the operational degradation of Gaza's hospitals. Targeting hospital directors and specialized surgeons, such as orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Obeid, directly affects the viability of trauma care infrastructure in northern Gaza.

MSF's charge of international complicity directs diplomatic pressure at third-party states. The assertion that "silence has become complicity" functions as a legal and moral argument aimed at activating third-state obligations under the Geneva Conventions. Whether domestic judicial intervention via the Supreme Court or international pressure yields a shift in detention policy remains the central variable for the remaining detained medical staff.