Asked about the release of the prisoners, the Israeli army said it was “verifying this information.” Israeli forces arrested Mohammed Abu Salmiya in November. Israel accuses Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, of using hospitals for military purposes, which it denies. “Under his leadership, the hospital was the scene of numerous terrorist activities by Hamas,” the army said at the time, searching the facility, the largest in the Palestinian territory, room by room.
At a press conference, the doctor said he had been subjected to “severe torture” during his detention. He reportedly suffered a broken thumb. “For two months, prisoners ate only one loaf of bread a day,” he continued, recounting that “many prisoners died in the interrogation centers and were deprived of food and medicine.”
“Giving up security”
“The release of the director of the Shifa medical center in Gaza, along with dozens of other terrorists, is a renunciation of security,” Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said in a message published on X on Monday.
In May, Palestinian prisoners’ rights groups claimed that two Palestinians, including a doctor from Al-Shifa, had died in an Israeli prison, succumbing to “torture” and lack of medical care. The Israeli army said it was “not aware” of such incidents. However, it opened an investigation on December 19 after several Palestinians arrested in Gaza since October 7 died in custody.
