Iran urges for safe release of Gaza hospital director abducted by Israeli regime

The president of the Academy, Alireza Marandi, made this demand in a letter to the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, on Saturday. The letter was titled “Urgent Call for Action Regarding the Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza.”

“We implore you to actively follow up on his (Abu Safiya) situation and work towards preventing further atrocities against healthcare professionals,” Marandi wrote.

He said the recent destruction of Kamal Adwan Hospital, the last remaining refuge for countless vulnerable Palestinians in the north, exposed the “unprecedented level of barbarism.”

On December 28, Israeli forces carried out airstrikes on Kamal Adwan Hospital, with the Gaza Health Ministry saying an estimated 50 people, including medical staff, were killed in the attacks and the rest were abducted by the occupation forces.

Dr. Abu Safiya was among those taken for questioning by the Israeli military over alleged links to the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas.

In his letter, Marandi called on the WHO chief to prevent atrocities against healthcare professionals such as those experienced by Adnan al-Bursh, who was raped and tortured to death.

Marandi, who formerly served as health minister, stressed the importance of the WHO chief’s leadership at this juncture to “ensure that the rights and safety of Palestinian medical personnel are protected and that the voices of those suffering are amplified.”

Since October 2023, Israel’s genocide in Gaza has resulted in at least 45,717 deaths, most of them women and children, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire.