SCOTLAND

The unreported torture and killing of Palestinian healthcare workers in Israeli detention

We reproduce an edited version of a speech made by Doctor Josie Shakur at a vigil held last month in Edinburgh of Healthworkers for Palestine.

Thank you for being here today. I’d like to focus on the torture of Palestinians in Israeli prisons particularly health care workers.

Between 2019 and 2022, nearly 2,000 complaints of abuse were made against Israeli prison officers. None resulted in any criminal conviction. In the past year alone, ‘officially’54 Palestinians have been tortured to death in Israeli custody. 

Healthcare Workers Watch Palestine have documented over 300 detentions of healthcare workers. They collected 31 accounts from healthcare workers describing torture and other abuses by Israeli authorities: rape, beatings with metal bars, starvation, handcuffed-induced amputation, electrocution, psychological terror. The list of atrocities is endless. ‘Officially’ four healthcare workers have been tortured to death in prison since October 2023.

These are war crimes as stated in the Geneva convention. Israel has been perpetrating these acts because for 76 years they have held a global pass to do whatever they want, unchecked.

The United Nations have been aware of this situation for years yet, they do nothing. Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations, wrote to them in September of last year pleading for change. 

Yet there is no outcry from mainstream media, politicians or our medical establishments. It’s the same tired impunity and it must stop!

Today we want to highlight the four health care workers tortured to death.

Dr Iyad Al Rantisi was director of maternity services at Kamal Adwan Hospital. He was kidnapped in November while trying to flee to safety with his family. He was wearing scrubs after finishing work. His daughter Dina recalls an IOF soldier summoned him from the crowd with two words: “Nurse, come.”His family never saw him again. 

After six days of torture in Shikma prison, he died from internal bleeding from his stomach.  Israeli newspaper Haaretz – not the authorities – reported his death in June, six months after his death. 

Dr Adnan Al Bursh was head of orthopaedics at Al-Shifa hospital and he was also medical advisor to the Palestine national football team. Incidentally, Palestine’s legendary football player Mohammed Barakat, known as “The legend of Khan Younis” was murdered by an IOF bomb in March but there has been no mention of this in Western sports press. No mention either of the 344 Palestinian footballers who have been killed in this genocide.

Dr Adnan completed his fellowship in Kings College London. He was married with five children and described as compassionate, heroic and much treasured in every orthopaedic department across Gaza’s hospitals.

He was kidnapped while at work in December along with other healthcare workers and taken to Ofer Prison in the West Bank. Four months later his death came to light only when some detainees released reported it on April 19th.

A UN statement confirmed his dead body showed signs of torture. What have they done about it?  Nothing – as per usual. His body remains with the Israeli authorities despite pleas from his family for it to be returned to them.

Dr Ziad Al Dalo was Deputy Director of internal medicine at Al -Shifa hospital. He was abducted whilst he was working on March 18th 2024 during the massacre at Al-Shifa. Very few details are available but he also endured severe torture before his death.

Paramedic Hamdan Anaba was kidnapped while co-ordinating patient transport at the Netzarim checkpoint in December 2023. He too was tortured and murdered in an Israeli prison. 

May God rest their souls and give them and their families the peace they so badly deserve. 

They are just the tip of a huge iceberg.

So Biden, Harris, Starmer, leaders of the Arab world and all those complicit in this genocide: stop torturing and murdering our healthcare worker colleagues and innocent civilians. We demand boycott, sanctions and real arms cessation to Israel.

Torture is a stain on our humanity and silence in the face of torture is complicity. We must continue to speak up and believe that hope can endure even in the darkest of cells.

No justice – no peace!

End the genocide! Demonstrate Saturday 30th November, 12 noon, Park Lane, London.